That's Some Hot Tea!
by CookieMonstersRUs
Summary: Lots of pairings. Some more important than others. When I landed on a tree in the land called Neverland, some idiot tried to throw a fireball at me. He lunged at me and I flew above him before crashing into him on purpose. He fell to the ground and I sat on his back with a smirk of my own before he flipped us around and held my thin neck in his hands. "Who are you?" "Kendra."
1. Preface

**Chapter One: Lemon Tea**

I looked down at my best friend, the one who I've begun to have feelings for, feelings we agreed to never have for each other all those centuries ago when we first began to be friends. I was breaching our 'contract' but how could I not? He was beautiful and kind and so, so clever even if

there would always be this dormant seed of hatred. I at least stopped it from growing. But...

His eyes looked at me in wonder, a rare occurrence, as he touched my pale flesh, warmth radiating and his calloused hands reaching up to cup my chin. "Kendra?" He asked, not sure if he believed it or not.

"It's me, it's me," I whispered, tears falling down my face as I shared with him something I thought I would only share with myself in the beginning.

"Shh, don't cry, why are you crying?" His eyes were tender and I heard a twig snap in the distance. We both looked up startled at the sound, his eyes hardening for a moment before softening at our best friend.

"Kendra?" The boy with no scars on his face, a surprising feat after living on this island for so long, looked back at us with wonder and amazement. I nodded and he ran to me, pulling me into his arms. I grabbed Pan and pulled him in as well and we laughed.

And then I woke up. The rest of the nightmare branded itself across my brain as it usually did, never letting me be free of the torment. I looked at the corner of the room, the figure watching over me with a sadistic smile blooming on his face at the fear in my eyes.

I tried.

At least I had tried. At least I tried to stop him from growing evil and bitter and cruel. But some seeds were destined to grow.


	2. August is a Creep

**Chapter Two: Peppermint Tea**

We had been riding for hours, from New York to Maine. Sebastian was coming out tomorrow and I just really wanted to get to the shop as soon as possible and if that meant tomorrow, then I would get there the night before.

August, being the mysterious lurker/wonder I knew he grew up to be, stopped his motorcycle right in front of the Sheriff and her kid. He got off lazily and I slowly followed suit, not actually wanting to stay here much longer (I was just so excited) and got to him just in time for him to say, "Is this Storybrooke?"

It took them a moment, confused most definitely, the kid giving me looks as Emma said, "Yeah."

"Anyplace to get a room 'round here?" I asked, wanting to move this along; August gave me a look that thoroughly expressed, 'This is my mysterious introduction! Let me be mysterious and cryptic!'

"Uhh...you're staying?" Henry asked clearly confused.

"That's the plan," the wooden man beside me replied. "Just looking for a bed."

"Granny's Bed and Breakfast is just up the road, another two blocks."

"Thank you." We both turned around to go back to our bikes just to hear Emma call out,

"Hey, I didn't catch your name!"

"That's because we didn't say it!" He call back because he was August and he was in that creeper phase of his life where he would be all mysterious and popped up everywhere when you were least expecting it. I gave August a look as we drove off on our bikes towards Granny's.

-/Tea Shop/-

_Someone was knocking at my door_...someone was knocking at my door...SOMEONE WAS KNOCKING AT MY DOOR!

I jolted up from the bed and scrambled to open it, the plaid covers tangling at my feet and I tripped just as I reached the doorway, chin banging hard on the floor. I reached up to the door anyway and opened it with a sheepish grin to see my brother on the other side, a teasing smile gracing his lips. "Have a good night Kendra?"

"Yep!" I chirped, untangling my legs, "I had a threesome with two guys who had serious STD problems without a condom or birth control! And then I went around town like a drunk lunatic, wearing nothing but a pair of gloves, and then had a raging party on the Mayor's front lawn before I went back to Granny's and got high off of white out markers!"

"So you did nothing?" he interpreted.

"Yes," I groaned, standing up and pulling him inside before flopping onto my bed and hiding under the covers. "When will this curse be _over_?" I whined and twisted under the blankets.

Sebastian began to rub at my back before patting it and leaning down to whisper, "Guess what I brought you?"

I shot up immediately, "What?" Sebastian pulled out a cup from behind his back and presented it to me, I moaned in pleasure when I got a good whiff and took a long sip from it.

"Peppermint tea my _favorite_! Oh god I haven't had tea in like ten hours Sebastian thank you! I could die happily with no regrets."

"Really?" He wondered, giving me a meaningful look. Before I could reply, he quickly changed the topic into something lighter, "Without even seeing your beloved tea shop? The one I just got the keys to go into when we find Mr. Gold? The tea shop we can check out as soon as you get dressed?"

I squealed-I was not ashamed of that fact-as I jumped out of bed, pulled on a pair of dark skinny jeans, and socks, and quickly changed my long sleeping sweater for a black v neck and white vest. I pushed my feet into my red converse, placed a white beanie on my head, pulled my red fingerless gloves on my hands, and my black coat on. Sebastian looked at me, impressed at my ability to do all of that in under five minutes.

"That was quick."

"We have tea to get to!" I shouted as I ran for the door, down the stairs of the B&amp;B, and out the door, not even bothering if Sebastian was behind me or not. I didn't even care where August went!

Sebastian ran out after me and we made our way down the streets, looking for the pawnshop but not bothering to ask anyone where it is. "So when does the moving van come?"

"Monday." It was Saturday. I only brought enough clothes for tomorrow. Oh well, I could just buy some new ones.

"And everything is in the vans right?" I asked; the vans had both all the things for us to live _and _all of the things for the shop.

"Yes. And before you ask, yes, Kendra, the floors are definitely dark brown and we'll get the paint for the walls for the apartment and the shop and yes, Kendra, tomorrow we'll make the signs and what not and paint everything and yes, Kendra, we'll open in a week because you are deranged. And Kendra...?"

"Hmm?" I asked, making sure the checklist in my head was being followed.

"Relax, you look eighteen, try to act like it, at least calm down." I sighed and nodded, his arm wrapped around my shoulder as we continued on.

After many wrong turns and laughs, we found ourselves at the shop we were looking for. It wasn't _my_ shop, but it was Mr. Gold's. As the door's bell rang, we entered inside to find a one Mr. Gold. He looked up from behind the counter and frowned before his eyes sparked with recognition. "Hello! You must be Mr. Jones and Miss Jones!"

"Yes, and you are Mr. Gold?" I questioned excitedly.

"The same, and I'm assuming you'll be wanting to see the shop?" Before I could exclaim loudly about _how much_ I wanted to see the shop, Sebastian answered for me.

"Yes, very much so. My sister here has been waiting a very long time for this as you can see by her jumping." Rumple chuckled and I glared at him mockingly.

"Ah yes..." Mr. Gold replied pausing for a moment before pointing between us with his came around the counter and made his way to the door, "You two don't look alike in the slightest."

"Adopted," Sebastian explained smoothly. "My parents adopted her when I was young, they died a few years ago, left us a fortune, and we decided to open up the shop."

"Tea though?"

"I _love _tea! My brother just so happens to love me very much." Mr. Gold nodded along as we made our way outside and down the streets. The bystanders looked at us once they noticed we were new. Huh, I guess it really _was _a small town.

"So the shop is a while down from Granny's Diner so you'll have to face competition along with loyal customers so I do hope you realize that this shop will take a lot of work. The apartment above is fit for two and is yours. I come to collect rent the first Monday every month."

He finished rattling off information when we came to a stop in front of a small shop on the corner of the street. Granny's, as they knew, was just down the road. Rumple waited outside obediently and expectantly and Sebastian looked at me too with that expression.

Pushing aside the murmuring of the storm and soft harsh words of my mind, I looked up at the store handle with awe surely glazing over in my eyes. I softly reached out for the handle like a baby would for its mother or blanket. I wanted this more than anything, this moment, this thought, this idea.

There were only two things I truly wanted in this world now in this day and age. The first I could never return to, he would only shun me and then I would be left heartbroken. But the second…oh the second was right in front of me and this dream started long before I met him...long before I met anyone important. Memories of drawings and the aromas wafting into my nose washed over me in waves, cleansing me, making my eyes shine bright. Sebastian placed his hand on my shoulder and I looked at him.

His encouraging smile made a tear slip out and my shaking hand pulled back the door, a soft breeze of cinnamon reached us. I gingerly traced the bare walls as I entered, looking at everything. I zoned out of the conversation as I took in the cream walls and dark brown wooden floors.

Burgundy walls began to shade in front of my eyes, tables and high chairs that I envisioned began to materialize, and the imaginary smell of tea and croissants surrounded me in a fine silk. The cold room began to warm and I could see the customers buzzing around as soft spoken words of poetry flitted in and out and an old couple coming in on every Tuesday to share a turnover and a man with piercings selling me his piece of art before ordering a coffee, a teenager with her blonde hair in a high ponytail leafing through one of the books, and me, standing behind the register or in the kitchens doing what I love while Sebastian decorated another teacup, one that would be sold merely weeks later.

And I could see laughter and light flames, I could see soft barking of that dalmation I saw this morning and giving Mr. Gold his money with a smile even if we only fed a few people the past month, happy that we could do what we wanted. I didn't _need _to wait for the moving van to see it, I could see it clearly now, I could see every fine detail and face and every emotion that would ever flit across my own.

There was still that distinct hole in my heart, but this, this was enough.

"So what do you think?" Mr. Gold's voice snapped me out of the bubble I had formed long, long ago. I whirled around, smiling widely at the two of them.

"We'll take it! Definitely take it," I announced happily. Sebastian nodded at in acceptance; the other man chuckled.

"Well then I'll see you around, Miss Jones, warning though, there's a storm coming," Rumpelstiltskin smirked.

"Isn't there though?" I replied with a twinkle surely in my eyes. We chuckled at our 'inside' joke and he left us in the store. I turned to Sebastian, "We need to get paint."

"Already?" he whined.

"Yes, and I'm not waiting tomorrow, give me money. I'll get the paint, you go and get flowers."

"Why flowers?"

"We need to give something to Emma of course! She'll freak out, August will get mad, and I can go connect with Henry!"

"Why are you so interested in the boy?" my brother asked as he handed over a twenty.

"Because he has the heart of the truest believer, I just know it, and if Pan's coming to collect than someone's going to have to protect him!" I chirped as I left the store, leaving him there, "Oh, and don't get crappy flowers, Seb! Make them real pretty! And meet August and I at Granny's!" I didn't need to turn around to know that he rolled his eyes.

Skipping down the street, it was already raining but I didn't care, I was too excited. Popping into the store, I quickly bought the shade I wanted and then made my way back to Granny's Diner. It would take Sebastian at least half an hour to find the correct store _and _get proper flowers. By the time I got into the Diner it was thundering and wretchedly storming. I found August the creep sitting at a table and I plopped across from him. "Hello friend!"

"Kendra," he nodded, "Interesting to see you here."

"Is it though? Is it really?" He frowned at my sarcasm and I sighed. " Anyway, I need a slice of pie for this." I got up and moved to the counter, ordering a slice. When I got back to my seat, Emma just opened up the door. "Incoming the Sheriff."

"Perfect," he replied with a grin.

"We need to talk," Emma spoke. _Oooohhh eery!_

"Why?" the smart ass across from me asked. I scooted over.

"Because….you're suspicious."

"Sitting here?" he asked incredulously, "Out in the open? Drinking coffee?"

"I wonder what hell he'd have raised if he ordered a donut," I added with a smirk. Emma glanced at me a with a frown before turning back to August.

"You were talking to Henry."

"You mean the little boy that went up to me asking questions? Is that unusual for him? Being curious and precocious?"

"What were you doing outside his house?" ever the Sheriff, questioned.

"My bike broke down. It happens," he replied. Bull shit, August, _of course_ it broke down.

"Your mysterious box, what's in it?" Now she was just fishing for answers.

"It's awfully frustrating isn't it, not knowing?" Sometimes I _did _want to wipe that smug grin off of his face.

"Just tell me."

"Why? Is it illegal to carry around a box in these parts?"

"No, of course it's not."

His head tilted, "You really want to know what's inside of it don't you?"

"No," August and I both gave her looks. "Well maybe." Sheriff Emma Swan plopped down next to me. I grinned at the boy across from us.

"I'm gonna make you wait," he decided. "I'm gonna make you wait a _long _time. Watch as I carry it around, hauling it to strange and mysterious places. And with each passing moment it'll become more tantalizing, your imagination will inflame, but so will your frustration, never knowing, only guessing what could possibly be inside that box?" Thunder rolled in the distance and my eyes began to glow in hidden mirth. Writers and their vocabulary. "Or…" August leaned over, "You could let me buy you a drink sometime, and I'll tell you right now!"

"You want to buy me a drink?"

"Yes."

"Okay. A drink it is," Emma decided. August smiled and leaned forward to pick up the box. I moved my dish just in time for him to plop it down and start opening the latches. And then the typewriter was revealed. I smiled at the baby before us; one of the many things we bonded over was our love for writing. "Really?" Emma asked in surprise.

"I'm a writer," August explained.

"That's why you're here?"

"I find this place provides...inspiration. Don't you?"

More thunder.

"Wait, have you been here before?"

"I didn't say that," the cheeky remarks began again! August grabbed his stuff before making his way to the back exit.

Emma turned around, "What about that drink?"

August turned back to reply with, "I said 'sometime,'" before leaving. Emma looked at him for a moment or two before turning back to me.

"You have very interesting friends kid." She looked me up and down. "How old are you?" she asked. I took a bite of my pie and saw Sebastian enter the restaurant.

"I do and older than I look."

"So what are _you _doing in Storybrooke?"

Sebastian sat down.

"We're opening up a shop down the road," my dear brother replied.

"You should bring Henry by, I'm betting he likes hot chocolate."

"He does." She looked between us. I looked at Sebastian and then the flowers.

"Oh! Here you go Miss Swan," Sebastian handed the flowers over with a grin.

"Um, flowers? For me?" she asked distrustingly.

"Yes, flowers for you, as a hello and an apology for freaking you out last night with the writer." And then I added, "Oh, and a bribe."

"You're bribing me?" her eyebrows raised.

"Of course!"  
"How else will we get you to come to our tea shop?" Sebastian explained.

"Curiousity would have done that."

"Yeah, but you're saving all of that for the biker and I mean, are you really going to come to our shop without an incentive?"

"Well, what's at the shop?" Emma questioned.

"It's a surprise," I smirked, "come on Seb, time to go paint the walls! Then off to explore the apartment!" I got out of the booth and with linked arms, Sebastian and I left the store, not waiting for the Sheriff's response.

We somehow started skipping down the street because Seb and I were ridiculous at times and not before long we were back in the store. Seb was getting out the paintbrushes and rolling up his sleeves while I shucked off my jacket, redid my ponytail, and popped the pain lid. We laid down sheets incase the paint dripped and we began to work. The storm cleared up and the fumes mixed in with the fresh scent of rain; laughter and music could be heard from our store. Hours later, we were finished.

Seb and I looked at each other, grinning, before throwing aside the brushes and sprinting for the stairs and up to the apartment. White walls and light brown wooden floors graced our eyes and before either of us said a thing, we ran back downstairs. dunking a hand in the paint jar and not caring anymore if it spilled (it'd be a great story to tell) we ran back up and imprinted our red hands on the wall.

Our new home was filled with laughter and giggles and snorts as we smeared paint on each other like the loons we were. That was the first night I didn't notice the image standing in the corner with a frown. That was the first night I was somewhat free.


	3. Leroy Deserves a Hug

**Chapter Three: Yellow Candles**

Today was opening day and just two days ago we had everything settled inside both the apartment and store. Bookshelves littered the room, tables and high chairs on their edges, a nice comfortable couch in the center with a coffee table in front, a display case of teacups that Seb had made in the years, coffee machines set up, chalkboard menus hung, and quotes in white clashing with the red walls. I smiled at the warmth it radiated. The past two days I had just been baking and preparing food and setting up the tea. I got the tea shop and Seb had to do the apartment, sometimes switching. We opened in ten minutes and I was so excited, even if there was no one there lining up waiting. Seb was upstairs changing, which I had done hours ago. Pft, that slow poke.

A short layered black dress with elbow length sleeves, red tights, and brown boots were donned on my glowing body. My hair was in one of those braids that wrap around your head like a headband and my golden watch laid snugly on my wrist. Red lipstick, a light eyeshadow on my eyes, and mascara was all that I had the attention span for.

7:13 and Seb came downstairs in a pale purple button up, black slacks, and his shoes.

7:14 and I flipped the closed sign to open.

7:15 and I was adjusting his bowtie.

7:16 and the bell chimed with my hands on Seb's bowtie and we both turned with eager smiles.

"Hi! Welcome to Phoenix's!" we greeted the young pale woman. She wore only creams and whites and I already knew who she was. Not because there was vicious gossip that she was a harlot but because Snow White was the easiest person to spot in a crowd. "What would you like today?"

"Oh!" She looked flustered, a bit surprised, "Umm can I have a hot chocolate?"

"One hot chocolate coming right up!" Neither of us moved; I elbowed Sebastian, "Go turn on the stove Seb!"

"OH! Oh fine! I thought you would like the honors to make the first order," he mumbled while he went back to the kitchen.

"I'll make the first _tea _order! Tea is life!"

"Tea is forever!" he called back. We-I-loved tea. I turned back to Snow.

"Hi there! I'm Kendra and you must be?"

"Mary Margaret, I'm surprised you haven't heard of me," she muttered the last part.

"Of course I have!" I chirped making her eyes widen, "But I prefer to judge characters on my experience and facts…and you just _ooze _innocence. Whatever story is going around, there's more to it, but I don't care! So what god has finally answered our prayers and graced us with your presence?" Heat crept up her cheeks when I bowed lowly, making my way behind the counter.

"Umm, I wouldn't so much as say graced but...wait-how old are you?"

"Why does everyone ask me that?" I muttered before replying with my usual answer of, "Older than I look! Do you want a danish? Croissant? Turnover? Cupcake, muffin, sandwich, anything?"

"Have any cinnamon buns?"

"One cinnamon bun coming up!" I cried, grabbing one and putting it on a plate, taking it over to the couch's coffee table. I sat down and Snow followed warily. Seb came out of the kitchen with a blue and white cup in his hands.

"And what would you like with your drink m'lady?" he asked.

"Um, cinnamon if you could?"

"Of course!" Sebastian came back a few moments later, placing the cup next to the plate before flopping down on the other side of Snow, "So what is the reasoning for honoring us with your presence, your majesty?"

"Do you two always talk like this?" We began to laugh. I placed my feet on the table.

"No, you just look like you needed a smile," I replied. Snow's lips quirked and her eyes softened as she took her whipped cream, chocolate drizzled, and cinnamon sprinkled hot chocolate. "Something wrong?"

"Well, there is a celebration every year called Miners Day and the nuns need help selling their specially made candles."

"Anything for you, Miss Blanchard. My dear brother here would be honored to watch over the shop while I help."

"As soon as she serves the first tea order," Seb added.

"After I serve tea," I conceded.

"Well thank you!" she smiled, surprised, and she shoved her cinnamon bun into her mouth. I got up after that and began to wipe down the counters once more. "You know not many people would help out the town harlot."

"Well than most people are stupid. Seb, aren't most town harlots the _best _conversationalists?"

"Yes, they are Kendra,. They have such great stories to tell!" Mary Margaret stared laughing, loudly.

"Who are you two?"

"We're Kendra and Sebastian Jones, Miss, and we like tea."

"As tea lovers we prefer not to judge-"

"-except for what they put in their tea-"

"-or if they decide that what we love is stupid-"

"-ah-men, hallelujah!"

She snorted into her hot chocolate. She drank the last of it before looking at us once more. "Well thank you, I'll see you later then, Kendra. How much do I owe you?" she asked as we all got up.

"A hug," I said after I mock thought about it for a moment or two. She gave me a look and I returned it with another before she submitted and entered my open arms. Seb patted her back before I let go, "I'll see you later Madam!"

"Bye!" she waved reluctantly before leaving. Seb and I looked at each other with small smiles.

-/Tea Shop/-

The first tea order was a man wearing a classy vest and coat, a scarf tucked in over his neck. He called himself Jefferson but we both knew that he was really Hatter. Seb watched us tiptoe a conversation around the topic we both knew the other wanted to discuss but refrained from doing so. He ordered Jasmine tea and a croissant which he later commented on how both were pleasantly delicious and sweet. I purposefully allowed my eyes to flash golden in front of him to clue him in on who we were and just so I could see his eyes widen largely and hear him whisper smally, "Kendra?"

"Hey, Hatter," I replied which snapped him out of it. He left quickly with both the tea cup and croissant in hand, calling back how he would pay for it later. Afterwards, I left the shop in Seb's hands, pulling on my black peacoat, a light brown plaid scarf, and a light blue beanie on my head and leaving. I decided not to wear my red fingerless gloves; I had to wear so many warm clothes just to keep up with my 'identity' that sometimes I just couldn't handle it.

I eventually found them at a booth, trying to sell any candle they can. "Buy your Miner's Day candles here! Handmade by Storybrooke's very own nuns! Light your way to a good cause!" Mary Margaret frowned, "...by buying a candle."  
"Hey there!" I smiled, trying to cheer them up even though their faces were glum.

"This isn't working," Snow replied in defeat.

"You're right. We should pack it up," Leroy added. I knew him from meeting him at the diner one day and ordering him something to drink. I knew Dreamy was still inside of Grumpy, I knew he was just a lost soul.

"And admit defeat!" I shouted in horror. I just got here! I was not pulling out!

"No sister, if the customers won't come to us, we gotta go to them, door to door," he explained looking at us.

"If they hate us here, what makes you think they'll like us in their homes?" Mary Margaret questioned. I realized where he was going to go with it.

"Exactly," Dreamy replied.

"They'll pay us just to leave," I explained, smiling with Leroy. Mary Margaret still looked unsure but I smiled at her, grabbing a few boxes. "If it helps, I'm totally buying like twenty of these later."

"Why?"

"What if the power cuts off in the shop?" I replied with a grin. We made our way through the festival, stopping by Emma when we found her with the Genie. I remember him from when I found him once.

"Oh, Emma! What's more sympathetic? Scarf or no scarf?" the woman in creams asked the flustered Sheriff. After a moment of floundering she replied with scarf. Then we left to start our _epic _journey of selling candles.

-/Tea Shop/-

"Hi! We're selling candles for Miner's Day!" Snow greeted, the man on the other side of the door looking her up and down while he took a bite out of his carrot; I scowled. Then his wife came, giving us a look.

"We're not interested." Before closing the door harshly.

-/Tea Shop/-

This happened many times. Even our most sympathetic pouts and looks could not help.

-/Tea Shop/-

When we got back to the room with only twenty sold candles (all from me), Snow had Leroy break the news to Sister Astrid who I also recognized as Nova. To say the least, Leroy was reluctant to tell her. "Sister Astrid?"

"Hi!" she smiled goofily as usual.

"I have to talk to you. You see I have some bad news." I winced at the start of his revealance.

"Oh no…what is it?" she sounded really sad and hopeful that it wasn't bad at all.

"The bad news is that…that…" he couldn't say it and Mary Margaret was shaking her head. Oh god Leroy don't, please don't say, "You nuns are gonna be real busy making candles, 'cause me and Mary Margaret just sold them all. You're not losing the convent. You're not going anywhere."

"Oh!" she giggled happily before jumping on him in a fierce hug.

I smacked my face, "Dammit Leroy!"

-/Tea Shop/-

"How could you tell Sister Astrid that we sold all those candles? That is $5,000, Leroy. $5,000 we don't have," Mary Margaret pleaded.

"Don't worry about it, all right? I got a plan."

"A plan like going door to door and everyone in town laughing in our faces? What plan?" I whispered harshly.

"Just give me till the end of the day. I'll figure something out."

"And why is this so important to you?" she questioned but I didn't say anything. I knew. I knew that there was still apart of him even without memories that would always love Nova, always want to help her.

"The nuns…they're gonna have to leave." The look on her face when she realized what was going on.

"Oh, my _God_! You _like _her! She is a nun, Leroy. Could you possibly pick anyone any _less _available?"

"Says the girl who went after a married guy?"

"Low blow, Leroy!" I shushed him but he continued.

"At the end of the day, you're no better than I am. You got your reasons for being here. I got mine. And when I say I'm gonna get that $5,000, I'm gonna _get _that $5,000," he replied determinedly before stalking off.

-/Tea Shop/-

After Leroy's dramatic exit I told Mary Margaret I had to get back to the shop for a moment to put the candles in their place. Seb gave me a look when we had to light up a bunch of them all over the place. "Thank god they're not some crappy smelling ones or else I'd have to veto this idea!" I messed up Seb's hair. I went to Granny's, where Mary Margaret was drinking her first glass of alcohol.

Here, I met Ruby, but who I once knew as Red, from long and tender moments of sharing the lonely experiences that feared mythical creatures felt and what it was like being in different skin. I missed those conversations. I missed the ones where I could describe to her what it was like being a phoenix, what it was like to shed that skin just once. She even knew a bit about Pan...and why I now somewhat hated my human skin.

I've gotten used to it over the years here.

But now I met Ruby and I knew we were going to be close; she already took a liking to my hair and told me stories of the woes of working at a diner. She gave me some hot chocolate and even though it wasn't as amazing as mine, I still smiled, heating it up just some more with the flames within my hands. I even told her to stop by the shop and that she may even like it there. She smiled and agreed, then the door opened, just as Snow was getting her second glass.

"I'll have what she's having!" Leroy called in the almost empty diner.

"Well?" I prompted.

"Did you get it?" the woman next to me asked hopefully. Grumpy had the grumpiest look on his face as he leaned forward and replied with sarcasm etched in every line of each letter,

"What do you think?" Snow looked away in defeat.

"I think you're right. I was dreaming if I thought the town harlot and the town drunk could accomplish anything-"

"Hey what about me!"

"-and the newcomer that no one knows and subsequently don't trust," she amended.

"Yeah," he replied before bringing his alcohol to his lips, "Just dreamin.'"

I almost snorted at that.

-/Tea Shop/-

"Leroy, you do realize a relationship between you and sister Astrid can never happen," Snow told him a while later.

"Yeah. Yeah, my whole life, people made it their business to tell me what I can't do. She was the first person that said I could do anything, who believed in me. I didn't want to disappoint her."

"But there are consequences to following through when the world tells you not to. I mean, look at me," Agreed, Snow…agreed, "I am a pariah in this town."

"What about your good memories?"

"What do you mean?"

"Didn't you have moments with him that you love?" Grumpy asked and oh god…my eyes were beginning to water as the memories faded in and out of my eyes: soft smiles, laughter, and twinkling eyes, "Do you regret them?"

"No, of course not," she whispered sadly.

"Isn't that what life's about? Holding onto your good memories," he shrugged, "All I wanted was a moment with Astrid-one moment to give me hope that any dream's possible. You've had all that, Mary Margaret, so stop feeling sorry for yourself and enjoy it because I haven't."

"Well, if I had the dream, then I'm sorry to say it wasn't worth it," she replied and a bubble of anger and sadness boiled within me.

"So then sitting here drinking won't end this pain."

"What will?" she asked helplessly. A look of pure concentration and dawning crossed his face.

"I can only think of one thing."

-/Tea Shop/-

Somehow we found ourselves up on the roof of a building, looking down at the festivities. I wasn't afraid of heights but I was wary of what was going to happen. Leroy got up to the edge and muttered, "Perfect."

"Leroy! What are you doing?" she demanded once getting up. "Oh...please don't do it!" The best look crossed Leroy's face and I wasn't ashamed that I laughed…for a moment…or maybe three.

"I'm not gonna jump," he told her with an incredulous look.

"You're not?"

"No. Are you crazy? I could hit someone," he replied. He gestured down to himself, "You know how much damage I could do? I'm solidly built."

"Leroy, what are you doing up here?"

"I'm gonna get my moment," Grumpy wrapped his hands around the ax stick like a baseball bat, getting ready to hit something.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What?" Snow asked in disbelief.

"You might wanna duck," was all he said before hitting the box and causing sparks to go everywhere. And it was beautiful how all the sparks lit up in the dark for a single moment, like embers in the fire just before the cold water hits them. And then the lights went out below.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm selling candles, sister."

We both smiled and another snort escaped my lips.

-/Tea Shop/-

Candle sales were booming. We couldn't give candles as fast as collecting the money and everyone wanted a piece of us that night. "Guys...We sold out," Snow said excitedly before laughing happily.

"Yeah!" Grumpy pulled us both in a hug. They both mussed up my hair…badly…making me pout for a few seconds before smiling again at our success.

"Well, go on, give her the news," I told him after I caught him looking over at Sister Astrid.

"Have your moment," Snow added thoughtfully. It took him a moment but he steeled himself and walked over to her with a stride of steel.

Later Snow and I wrote the sold out sign before she blew out her candle and went on her way, promising to stop by the shop after her goodbyes.

-/Tea Shop/-

Seb found me eventually, in the crowds of fireflies. "It's beautiful isn't it?" he asked and by the look on my face he immediately pulled me in for a hug. "What's wrong?"

"Leroy was talking about how not having the happy _moment _with the one you love is worse than having one…"

"Dra…"

"It's just so _hard _Seb, hearing his voice everywhere. Seeing that evil smile each time he visits, having to suffer _every single moment_ with no one to stop the hallucinations. To remember what it was like before and then remember that right after_ the moment_, everything was destroyed. It's not fair to never have peace. It/\'s not fair to remember. These mortals are lucky, Seb, they don't have to live through it for more than one lifetime," by the end of my rant I was buried in his arms sobbing.

"Kendra," he whispered, "One day, you'll meet someone who you will love so much that you won't remember this-"

"Seb it isn't like that-"

"-Is it not? Isn't he the one you loved because it was easy? Because you still ached after Romulus?"

"Romulus made me this thing Seb…but Peter…"

"He's just a boy-" I shook my head vehemently. I couldn't say it, I couldn't, but Seb knew what I meant without words. The cooling of my skin, the flare of my soul and heart, the flash of gold in my murky green eyes, signs of...signs that a phoenix...

"No! He's more than that Seb...he's...he's my...:"

"Oh my...Kendra, tell me he is _not _your...your…"

"Mate...he's my mate."

"Kendra! He-he can't be...Kendra, he can't be your...your perfect-_your soul mate_. You told me he wasn't, why would you-"

"It hurt too much to admit-I had just found out and it was-" He took me home after a sob escaped my lips.


	4. BEEELIEVVVVEEEE HENRY!

**Chapter Four: The Red Teacup**

The next morning I found Seb sitting at one of the tables looking down at the teacup in his hands, I came around him to give him a hug, my head leaning on his shoulder, "What's wrong?"

"I was thinking about last night…about having moments with your mate and then being ripped away from them is just…_awful…_but then I started thinking about…how you don't have to watch them grow up or fall for others or make foolish mistakes…or even _forget _who they are," he told me, a brooding look beginning to blossom.

"Oh god Seb, I didn't mean to…I'm so sorry for reminding you…why don't you just go _talk_ to her?" I pinched his sides in exasperation.

"I saw her fawning over August last night…he doesn't know-I don't want him to…but...it was just that he was only a few seats away and she was just close enough to touch and then she had a fight with her grandmother and she quit her job and I don't know where she's going to stay and I can't just ask her because I'm still a stranger and I'm so, so worried that she'll get cold and-"

"Seb, calm down," I commanded, holding his shoulders still when he began to shake, "The curse will be broken soon...and then you can finally kiss her again."

"But that was only _once, _Dra, and it was in the heat of the battle and she doesn't even _like _me!"

"Of course she does! Seb, how did she make you feel? How does she make you feel each time you think of or see her?"

"Dread," he replied, "a thick and small ball of dread building in my gut at the thought that today may be our last. That she won't love me, that she won't smile, that her eyes won't glow golden, that there won't be a connection between us anymore. And then nervous wrecks like I can't get her out of my system even if I tried. Followed by fluttering butterflies that are so goddamn giddy because I still get to see her beautiful face even if it's masked by makeup and that somewhere...somewhere there is this girl who turns into a mythical creature like me. A girl who lost her family like us. A girl who seen pain but still smiles at me, as I do to her. A loyal girl that won't ever leave if we ever fell in love. If we ever kissed again…"

"She'll kiss you again...and then she'll remember, because she's strong enough to remember, Seb. God, you're such a sap, just go kiss her once more-"

"No! I don't want her to remember," he cut me off, "I want her to stay blissfully unaware…just for a little longer. You've seen what it did to Jefferson…I don't want her to have to live like that or us, I want her to be happy in her normal life just a little longer."

"Just go talk to her though…say hello, Seb. Make her smile."

-/Tea Shop/-

_I was back in my phoenix form, feathers upon feathers piercing out of me, hot flames at every tip, and air flying through my every pore, free to roam the worlds below. But I wasn't happy, no, I was in pain, another piercing stab jolted through my heart and I began to crash in the air, not able to hold my body afloat. It hurt, it hurt so much as another pierce began to break my fragile heart._

_So much pain, so much pain, so much pain..._

_And not just emotionally, not just physically, no, that would be too easy. But mentally, to realize your…your soul mate, just to have them shun, and dis, and tear you up with cruel words on a jagged knife-it hurt. It hurt so much and then being forced to leave, being ripped away from them without even a single thought. It hurt so much and I just knew that if I ever tried to come back he would hurt me...he would throw his knives at me and be done with it._

_At least then I wouldn't have to feel this heartbreak._

_Another piece of my heart tearing away, just a little bit and I began to fall out of the sky completely, letting the pain wash over me, and continued my way down like a comet into the snowy land below. I crashed, badly, and I could not get up again._

_Hours turned to days and I still would not stand up…until soft hands soothed over the aching flames of my feathers. "Red, what is it?" a man's voice asked._

"_Kendra?" a familiar voice asked, bringing me back to reality. My closed eyes began to open but I closed them again._

"_Let me die Red…let me die," I muttered, a soft wail escaping my lips. Red pried my eyes open, soothing my burning body with her cool hands some more._

"_Kendra, Kendra, don't die! Kendra, what happened? What happened to that boy? Kendra? Kendra, tell me what happened," Red was begging now, holding my drowsy face in her hands. A blonde man above held his sword in his hands with a wary expression on his face._

"_He didn't…he didn't love me back," I whispered pitifully before she wrapped her arms around me tightly, cocooning me into her arms. _

"_Shhhh…it's going to be okay…we're going to go find Snow. This is Charming…they're…they're in-"_

"_Love," I whispered, a hot tear of gold slipping out of my beady golden eyes. "They're in love." I didn't expect it, but my flesh began to strengthen in heat...a new surge of feeling welling up in my veins: determination. It was a hard slap from reality. Laying here, begging to die wouldn't help me, wouldn't help anyone. But helping Snow…_

_The snow around us began to heat up._

-/Tea Shop/-

Seb talked to her, he did, right after she got back to the Diner and reclaimed her job. Then my older brother, apparently, went up to her, introduced himself, and asked if she would like to go for a walk in the woods. She was confused of course but then he explained about how he heard that she was a great tracker and he wanted to get a sense of the forest around town. She smiled and blushed, surprised he wasn't hitting on her.

They were to go on their 'date' later today.

And I needed to go check on Snow because she never did come by the shop...and this whole Kathryn Nolan thing was getting confusing. I needed to understand what was going on in my friends' lives. And then Jefferson called, asking me to come over in a day or two, wanting to talk to me finally.

The doorbell rang open and I looked up from the spot on the counter that I was scrubbing to find Regina entering. She had a serious expression on her face and I just _knew _we were going to have an unwanted conversation. "Hello, there! I'm Mayor Regina Mills," Regina smiled sharply, unaware of who's shop she just walked into. "I would just like to greet you to our little town, sorry it took so long for me to come and introduce myself. The whole Nolan case has been so hectic!"

"Yeah, what was happening with that? I'm trying to get into contact with Mary Margaret but I haven't been able to get through to her."

"Well, she won't be available for a while but if you would like to know more, you could always the Sheriff's office, they're roommates," she recommended with a smile that was…_off_. "But enough about them, what is your name?"

"Kendra," I bit out before a mocking smile bloomed across my face after seeing her face drain of color. I guess she did remember.

"Oh…_oh_, well I-" Regina turned to leave.

"You don't have to go, Regina." She stopped. "I have no qualms with you today. I won't ever forget what you did, but I would like my mayor to become acclimated to the newcomers, tea?" I offered.

Regina looked surprised, extremely, which was in fact not a surprise. But it also wasn't a surprise that this is how I would react. Phoenix's have lived long enough to know that she regretted what she did, when she realized what she had done. She didn't know, not many did, but the other Phoenixes still held a grudge of sorts. We protect kin and even though I was not blood related, I was still one of them.

"Uh...a coffee would be nice," she replied, sitting uncomfortably on one of the high chairs. "So did you want to talk about-"

"No," I cut her off, "I don't want to talk about it."

"What about him-"

"I said no, Regina, I will not discuss what you discovered about me when I was under your control."

"And why not?" I handed her the cup of steaming coffee.

"Because, you know my name. You know how I came to be. You knew how I felt about him. You knew what I've been through and that is a cruel fate. The only other person even close to that has the rest of my heart and I will not tolerate you speaking about any of it. I will allow the Phoenixes to do whatever they please with you if you don't stop."

"You mean to tell me that you've been protecting me?"

"You'd be surprised how many people I protect, you're just lucky that Seb wasn't here."

"The other one is here?" Regina looked around the empty shop. "Why is that so bad?"

"He really wants to tear out your throat and strip your core of magic."

"Does he now?" she asked, taking another sip, interested in what Seb wanted with her.

"Oh yes, he's extremely protective."

-/Tea Shop/-

"_Red, look out!" Charming exclaimed and my eyes barely registered the flaming arrow heading towards us before I controlled the flames with my wings. Horses sounded in the distance, "We need to move, they found us." Red picked me up in her arms, rushing me to the horse Charming was already on. He held out a hand for Red but she just passed me over._

"_Go, I'll take care of them. Protect Kendra."_

"_Red, I'm not leaving you!" the prince refused._

"_Find Snow. That's all that matters. Find her!"_

"_What are you gonna do?" She looked up at the full moon, then at me. My eyes softened and a tear of fire escaped from me._

"_I'm giving you a head start," was all she said before shucking her red cloak. Charming seemed to catch on that something was about to happen so he made the horses gallop. A howl was heard in the distance._

-/Tea Shop/-

I met Henry outside of Emma's and Mary Margaret's apartment, which I got directions from Red. It was the first time I met Henry since my arrival which was surprising and disappointing because he was curious about _everyone _but hadn't been curious about us? And then Seb told me Henry stopped by while I was out but that still made me sad. I just wanted to be his friend!

"Henry!" I exclaimed excitedly.

"Oh, Miss Jones, hello," he replied and I made a face.

"Please, I'm not _that _old Henry," well, actually, I was much older than that, "call me Kendra, please, I'm like only a few years older than you." More like a few thousand years older than you.

"Oh, okay, how do you know Emma?"

"I bribed her."

"For what?" he asked incredulously.

"To get you to come to the shop, August told me just how curious you are, and I am too. I also heard that if I wanted any quality friends, it's someone who likes hot chocolate."

"And I fit the bill?"

"Exactly," I replied, messing up his hair before following him in.

"Henry, Kendra, what are you doing here? Why aren't you in school?"

"We have to help Miss Blanchard," Henry told Emma.

I was confused. "What happened to Sno-Mary Margaret?"

Emma looked down at Henry. "I am helping her. That's why I'm searching the apartment. But you gotta go home, Henry, and you need to get back to your shop, Kendra."

I shrugged. "Seb's watching over the shop."

"Not gonna happen," Henry added before smiling at her. We looked at each other for a few moments.

That was until Emma conceded with, "Just stay out of the way."

"So what are we looking for?"

"And what happened?" I asked.

"I'm trying to see if maybe someone broke in," Emma replied, walking around the apartment, "Looking for busted door jams, broken glass, muddy boot prints-that kind of thing."

"So you think someone's setting her up," Henry understood-I did not.

"FOR WHAT?"

"For the murder of Miss Nolan," he murmured. When did she die? WHY DO THEY THINK IT WAS SNOW?

"It's the only thing that makes sense," Emma replied to Henry's earlier conclusion after checking the windows in the Mary's room. "The only problem is nobody's got a motive."

"My mom does."

"Regina?"

"Oh, yeah, I can see it," I agreed, finally understanding her strange smile.

"She hates Snow White," he explained and I looked at Henry in shock,

"You know about the fairytale characters!" I exclaimed, looking at him in awe. No wonder he had the heart of the Truest Believer, in this world, it was pretty easy to not believe. Henry gave me a look that said 'We're going to talk about this later.' Emma gave Henry a strange look.

"Hey, you wanted a motive," he shrugged.

"Well I don't think 'she hates Snow White' will hold up in a court, Henry," ever the party pooper, Miss Swan. Henry turned away to look at Snow's room and Emma sat on the bed, I traced one of her books. Then we began to hear a loud banging from the ventilation which caused us to look at each other then back to it. Emma got off the bed and took the screen off the floor, peering inside before grabbing whatever was within, pulling it out.

"Did you find something?" Henry asked. Emma did, I realized as she presented the clothed object. She pulled off the cloth and there appeared a long knife.

"I'm assuming that's the murder weapon," I said; Emma looked at me. Henry's face fell.

-/Tea Shop/-

I took Henry back to the tea shop, setting him down in one of the chairs and making him the best hot chocolate of all time. When I gave it to him, he was still frowning and August came in, "I don't think that hot chocolate's going to drink itself," the wooden man announced before sitting across from Henry. I nodded along before sitting in the seat next to them. "You're upset about your teacher, aren't you?" I gave August a look.

"She didn't do it. Why can't anyone see that?"

"I can," I told him, placing a hand on his arm.

"Because most people just see what's right in front of them," August answered, "And I don't think you're going to find the answers you want at the bottom of that mug." Leave it to August to somehow bring up alcoholism into the conversation.

"Then where?" Henry wondered aloud before taking a sip.

"That a book in your bag? You know I'm a writer-"

"-as am I-"

"-so I'm partial to finding my answers in the literary form."

"It's just a book," he dismissed sadly and a piece of my soul broke.

"Is it?" I asked.

"Yeah."

"I think we all know that that's not the case," August announced and I smiled at him. "Can I get a tea please, Kendra?"

"One green tea coming up," I told him before moving to the kitchen; I could still hear them from the room away.

"What do you two know about it?"

"I know it's a book of stories." I came back out, leaning against the kitchen's door frame, watching them and waiting for the tea to warm.

"Aren't all books?"

"But these stories...well they _really _happened," I told the young boy.

"You think my book is real?" Henry whispered. I came up to him, leaning in real close.

"As real as I am," August replied.

"How do you know?"

"Let's just say that we're, uh, we're believers. And I want to help others see the light," and way to make it sound like we're a cult August, "That, my friend, is why I'm here."

"Plus, trust me, it's real," I added.

"But I already believe it and trust you."

"Oh, I'm not here for you, buddy. I'm here for Emma," August replied and I went back to get his tea. I began to put in all the things August liked in his tea.

"So, you want to get her to believe? Why don't you just tell her?" the little one badgered.

"Well, there are some people-like you, Kendra, and me-we can go on faith. But others, like Emma, they need proof."

"Last time I tried to find proof, I got trapped in a sinkhole." I almost dropped the red tea cup, my heart stopping for a moment.

"There are less dangerous places to look," the older man confided, leaning over to point out the book. I handed August the cup, knowing he would just pay me back later for it, and he left, Henry already getting out the book to read. A smile graced the boy's lips.

"I wonder who you two are," he murmured quietly.

"I wonder if you'll ever figure it out," I replied.

-/Tea Shop/-

_Prince Charming and I were riding for hours and light began to shine through the trees. We were silent, until, "So how do you know Snow and Red?"  
"I saved them once, a long time ago when I was just passing through, I helped them out of a tight spot. It could have been months here but it was years upon years ago for me. At least a lifetime ago."_

"_And you're a...and you're a Phoenix? I think I've heard of your kind before."_

"_I'm not surprised, catching one is a rare occurrence. But yeah, I'm something like a Phoenix." A few more moments of silence passed and I could feel the itch of his curiosity._

"_Who were you talking about, Kendra? Back there, with Red, why you crashed. You said-"_

"_He didn't love me."_

"_Snow said she didn't love me as well but she lied to protect me, maybe he…maybe he was doing the same, maybe he really does lo-"_

"_Charming, stop," I sat up from his lap, straightening my back, and looking ahead with a steely gaze. Fire pulsed across my body in veins. "He couldn't have loved me. It was all…it was all just an illusion and I don't want to dwell on it until we're safe. Until you have Snow and then I can sort it out myself." He didn't reply so instead he stopped the horse, jumping down to look at the tracks in the snow. He found a boot print so he pulled out his sword and we followed the tracks to find a bare backed man a few paces ahead._

"_Put your hands where I can see 'em." The man awkwardly turned around to reveal that only his helmet covered his skin. Charming was repulsed, "Uh…on second thought, don't." Charming threw the naked man a cloth and he promptly wrapped it around himself, "Who did this?"_

"_She's crazy. She had a pickaxe. She threatened to skin me!"_

"_The Evil Queen?" the prince asked._

"_No. Snow White." My eyes must have burned and so would have Charming's, we both stormed over and my talons dug harshly into his shoulder._

"_What?" I hissed darkly in his ear. Charming put his sword to the man's throat._

"_She said she wanted to kill the queen. I've never seen someone so blood thirsty."_

"_No," Charming denied, "Snow is not bloodthirsty. She is not a killer. I know her."_

"_Maybe you don't," the man replied and Charming looked crushed._

-/Tea Shop/-

_We eventually found Rumpelstiltskin's palace and I was not in any way or form excited to enter inside. Rumpelstiltskin was the son of Peter. Peter the boy I still loved. The boy who left a nasty gash across my heart. I wanted a bit of the same vial Snow had to help forget._

_But Charming somehow convinced me to enter, "Rumplestiltskin! Show yourself."_

"_Still dressing like a prince, I see," I looked at Charming with hints of confusion, "Even though you ran away from the life I gave you. How's that for gratitude?"_

"_You gave me a prison sentence."_

"_Yeah, one that you've now skirted. Careful, dearie. King George is a vengeful man."_

"_We're here about Snow."_

"_And who's this?" Pan's son questioned, his eyes piercing. His skin glittered grotesquely but I could see the grin of Peter from anywhere._

"_None of your business Rumple so don't even try," I threw at him, looking at David for his help to steer the conversation away. Luckily he understood my look._

"_Rumor has it she's after the queen and she came to you for help."_

"_Yes, indeed." Charming slung out his blade so fast both Rumple and I jumped back, "What did you do!" he demanded._

"_What did I do to her? You mean what did _you _do to her," like father like son, they had a way with words. "You caused her pain. Without that pain, she would never have drank my potion to forget about you. That's what changed her." Rumple made his way around the table and his chest now touched the blade._

"_Undo the potion. All magic can be broken."_

"_Oh, yes, with twoo wuv." A stab pierced my heart at the very phrase. The stitches that barely held my pain in were splintering, snapping, and tearing apart._

"_So that's it then? True love's kiss will awaken her."_

"_Most certainly. But it's gonna be hard to kiss her when you don't know where she is," and with that he jerked the sword away from his chest and I curled my talons into a fist, waiting to throw fire at the man, the one that walked away from Charming._

"_Name your price."_

"_How about...your cloak," he turned around._

"_My cloak? Why would you want my cloak?"_

"_It's drafty in here," came the smart ass reply. Charming debated it for a moment before ripping of his cloak and placing it on the table._

"_Where is she."_

"_On her way to the Queen's highway," he explained before a piece of parchment appeared, "This is the route she's taking. But you better be quick, because if she kills the queen, she becomes as evil as the woman whose life she takes."_

"_She could never become that evil," the prince persisted before turning away to walk out. I turned to follow._

"_Evil isn't born, dearie. It's made. If Snow starts down that road, you'll never get her back!" I moved to follow Charming out but Rumple closed the door before I could reach it. I turned back to the man with fire clearly singeing the floor at my annoyance. _

"_What!" I hissed darkly._

"_You haven't paid the price dearie, you are also apart of this deal," the wizard answered and Charming's banging could be heard from outside. I sighed before looking up at the man closely._

"_What do you want, Rumpelstiltskin?"_

"_A feather," he replied and I smirked on the inside. Phoenix feathers, if ever caught always burnt into ash no matter what magic tries to keep it after a few moments of leaving the body. I easily plucked a feather from my wing and presented it to the wizard, allowing the flames to lick at his fingers._

"_Enjoy," I muttered before I turned around flashily, spreading out my feathers, and proceeded to fly out of the door, which opened to my own magic. _

-/Tea Shop/-

_We found Snow a while later and she was testing her bow. I could feel the hole gaping in her heart and Charming grabbed her by the face, covering her mouth and pushing her body into his._

_She struggled fiercely, "Get your hands off me!"_

"_Snow!" we both shouted at her. And I perched myself on a branch._

"_Who are you? What are you doing?!"_

"_I'm helping you remember," he replied before lunging for a kiss and I covered my face with my wings, groaning at how stupid Charming was. When he pulled back Charming added, "I told you, I will always find you."_

_Snow looked surprised for all of five seconds before throwing a punch and knocking him out. She looked at him with cold eyes and I swooped down to Charming right after she left, knowing I wouldn't be able to help her. When she came back, I swooped down to claw at her arm angrily. "Kendra?!" Snow asked with pure surprised written on her face, "What are you doing here?"_

"_What am __**I**__ doing here? What are __**you **__doing here?"_

"_The Queen, I'm here to kill the-"_

"_Yes I know and do you know what I'm doing here? To stop __**you**__," I told her. Snow began to wrap Charming's arms to the tree. Tying it securely._

"_You wouldn't understand Kendra."_

"_I wouldn't understand? I wouldn't understand what? Having a gaping hole in your heart? A void that you just can't fill so you turn to something else-__**I've been there**__!"_

"_No you haven't, you have that boy Peter. Go back to him! Let me live my life."_

"_I can't Snow. I can't go back to him. But before him-before all of that, before I met you or him or anyone-it hurt a lot. It hurt so much, do you remember what I told you about me being a Phoenix?" It took her a moment to remember._

"_You told me you weren't like the others, that you were different."_

"_Do you know why I say that?" She shook her head and I could distinctly see my own feathers turning into embers, "Because I'm __**not **__like them. I wasn't born a phoenix, Snow, I was __**made **__into one. I was forced into this body and the first time…when I changed I…Snow, I did something awful. Everyone close to me was burned. And after that…I couldn't live with myself. I tried to fill that void and I did. I did by escaping and being with Peter. But I can't do either of those and look at me. If you knew what I looked like when I crashed here, you wouldn't understand. My species shuns me, I have no family, and one of my closest friends is turning into a monster, Snow. Don't do this, don't become something that you can't come back from."_

"_I would, but frankly, I really don't care. The Queen is the root of all my problems and when she's gone, I'll finally be free," she said matter of factly. And with each word she spoke in that tone, my fire began to cease. My sight began to blur with each pronunciation until…until black consumed me._

-/Tea Shop/-

_Charming, who I later discovered was James, woke me up what felt like hours later. And we ran. Well, he ran; I flew. But I was stumbling, crashing into trees. When we got near Snow's location, I turned to James and yelled, "You get Snow, I'll distract the Queen!"_

"_What!? No! You'll get hurt or captured or worse!"_

"_Save Snow White, help her remember, tell her that sometimes sacrifice is the best void to fill!"_

"_What does that even mean?!"_

"_Find her, Charming, I'll see you one day!" I shouted before flying ahead, faster than before. But I was burning up more energy, weakening my body, but if I could help my friends, do something good...then it would be okay. __**I'd **__be okay even if for just a moment._

_I didn't know it, but Charming stopped Snow at the exact moment, but my distraction would have been after the saving, further up the road and no help would be coming for me._

_I crashed into another tree branch._

_My feathers began to fall off my wings. Fire dropped like rain to the snowy ground. _

_And I crashed to the ground, right at the Queen's feet._

_I burnt too much energy. The snow weakened the already running out fire. _

_She could have easily captured me and I wouldn't have been able to escape. On a dark and snowy day filled with pain, friendship, and sacrifice, I was captured by Queen Regina, in a magical cage that was poisonous to my human counterpart. I wouldn't have been able to escape. And I didn't even try as one last breath escaped my lips. _

-/Tea Shop/-

"Hey, Kendra?"

"Yes Hatter?"

"Come over to my house tomorrow night for dinner so we can chat."

"Okay, see you then."

"Oh, and make sure you bring some tea."

"Will do Jefferson."

"Bye, Kendra."

"Bye, Jefferson."


	5. Why Regina is Awkward Around Kendra

**Chapter Five: Withering Tea Leaves**

_I woke up in a cage. A golden cage with intricate designs curling up each rail and all the way to the dome at the top. My wings were dull, no fire surrounding me, and I was unusually cold. Phoenixes are never cold._

_Three, two, one-_

_Pain._

_It flooded into my consciousness and I curled in on myself even more than I had before. Unwanted, unrestrained, unmerciful pain pouring all over my body. Seeping out of my every pore and feather like gasoline and my talons drew blood on my own body when I tried to scratch the pain away. Blood, sweet blood, spilling, leaving my body, the toxic pain should have left with the blood._

_It didn't._

_I wailed in agony, images of him, him, and them. Every single person I cared for, so much pain, so much lost. Never to return. I scratched harder, dug my talons deeper. "I see you're awake," the voice of the queen filled my ears and I moaned in agony. She talked while I continued to scratch and tear, "I've heard of your kind, but I've always wanted to meet one."_

_I shuddered as her cool hand went to stroke my already dying feathers. They began to shed, harsher and harsher smooth skin was exposed. My talons began to shrink and my screams came out harsher._

_I couldn't escape, I couldn't escape, I was shifting back into my human form, and I couldn't escape. My body would be exposed, the heat would disappear, I began to remember that Peter shunned me the first time I returned to my original form._

"_What's happening?" Regina demanded and when I didn't reply, she threw a ball of fire at my now human flesh. The burn stung, I wasn't immune, I wasn't immune, I wasn't immune, why wasn't I immune. I wailed. _

"_P-Peter," I whimpered pitifully and I didn't even realize it. I squeezed my eyes shut, all the images dancing across the lids. My red hair tumbled down my bare back and surrounded my naked body. I was so cold. So cold. Regina's cold fingers grazed my skin and I flinched in agony._

_I couldn't breathe, I couldn't breathe, I couldn't breathe. No one was coming for me, no one was coming for me, no one was coming for me. I was going to live forever insane, never being able to die, never having the pleasure of death. My fingers clawed at my throat._

_The curse of the Phoenix; only complete and utter heartbreak could destroy us._

_The curse of me as a Phoenix; I would destroy anything I loved._

_So much pain, so much pain, so much pain, so much pain, so much-"Answer me!" Regina growled and I didn't even know what she asked before she grabbed my throat in a harsh motion and forced my eyes open to hers._

_And that's how she knew everything. _

_The images dancing across my pain addled mind, searing into her own, and I deftly shut my eyes, trying to expel all the pain, all of the pain, all of the pain, all of the pain-"Seraphina," Regina whispered brokenly before a warm robe draped over my shoulders._

_I cried loudly._

_She knew my name, she knew my name, she knew my name, she knew my name, only the one you love the most could know your name, could know your true name, true name, true name, true name, she knew my name. _

_She wasn't supposed to know my name._

_Now she had complete control of my entire being. Power of our names, true power, true power, true power lies with the Phoenix beholder. Gasps and wails and cries and tears, savaged the room brutally, filling the unknowing queen._

_Now she knew, now she knew, now she knew._

_Now she knew everything about me._

_A storm of squawks bombarded the room and flashes of light, heat that I crept as close I could, and the scent of a hot shower of fire filled my nose. "REGINA!" a loud and angry voice bellowed with fury. _

"_I'm so-"_

"_You DARE TAKE the name of a phoenix? Our own brethren!"_

"_I didn't mean to-"_

"_You DARE FORCE her to transform!?"_

"_I didn't know-"_

"_You DARE SPEAK harshly to those of higher power?"_

"_I'm sorry, I'm so so-"_

"_You DARE TORTURE a creature of the gods?!" _

"_I'm so sorry! I didn't know! I didn't mean to. I was just trying to understand-"_

"_NO!" the most soft spoken voice roared, "You did not know! And you will NEVER understand. Heed my words Regina, if you harm or touch or even SPEAK of this to anyone EVER! You will have called war and the wrath of the Phoenix race. We do not strike war with any, but an act of torture and cruelty to our tribe is an act of war which we are willing to fight. If I EVER come across you doing something so cruel and inhumane to one of us again, I WILL find you. And I WILL tear your flesh from your body one sliver at a time until you __**know **__what it feels like to be violated. If we ever cross paths again in this form of nature again, you will pay the ultimate price; the absolute undoing of everything you have ever done with the knowledge of what has happened-"_

"_You haven't even come into contact with her before-why now?" Regina interrupted snidely._

_The voice ceased and the others panted angrily, low mumbling snarls and sqwaks barely contained. When the voice spoke again, it sounded brokenly. "A curse of our own Regina and if you knew anything about Kendra, the Phoenix of Humans, then you should know that this was all created to bring her pain. If we come across you again, doing such things to her, be willing to pay the price."_

_I moaned softly when the light touch of heated feathers wrapped around me in a tender silk, picking me up from the cage and cradling me like a baby into their arms. The soft voice was hushed when it addressed me, "There, there sweet little Kendra. We're so sorry we didn't come sooner. We'll be with you forever now, no one can separate us now."_

_I nodded softly and snuggled into his arms. The heat of the Phoenix felt good on my feverishly cold skin. "When will it get better brother?" I asked softly, whimpering, Regina was long since forgotten and she watched with saddened and regretful eyes as they led my quivering body away._

"_One day my sweet, sweet Kendra."_

"_And when will it end?"_

"_I don't know Kendra."_

"_What is your name brother, I need someone to hold."_

"_Sebastian."_

"_Sebastian." I repeated his name as if it was a saving grace._


	6. Hatter Drugs EVERYONE-Except Sebastian

**Chapter Six: Valerian Within the Tea **

Things around the tea shop were slow but happy. Seb and I always had a smile on our face whenever someone came by. It was generally August, Jefferson, and Henry who ordered and stuck around. But sometimes-actually most of the time, I would find Ruby here whenever Seb was on shift and each time I spotted them, their bodies had inched a bit closer. It always brought a smile to my lips.

Today I was going to have my long overdue chat with Jefferson. I was hoping he was going to make me pasta; I _love _pasta. He always made the best pasta tool. And he had _fantastic_ taste in tea and we just got along so nicely all the time.

Or at least I thought we did.

I was wearing some dark jeans and a white tank top, hair pulled up, eyes excited. I went to his house at seven on the dot and he was waiting for me on his big porch. He lived in the most gigantic house but had no family, a sad fact. When I got there, Jefferson _did_ indeed have both pasta and tea waiting for me. I smiled and sat down on one of his living room couches with a bowl in my hands.

Jefferson poured me a cup of tea but I didn't drink it.

"You have a very nice home Hatter."

"Thank you, Kendra," he replied with a smile, "How are you liking Storybrooke?"

"Better than you I would assume; Sebastian and I are having quite an enjoyable time."

"Hmm, yes," his chuckled sounded odd, "You two gave me quite a surprise when you showed up, still having your memories, and just serving tea like nothing was going on."

"Well, as you know, Hatter, Phoenixes can cross through worlds-"

"-but you can't take others with you, I know. I remember in Wonderland when you told me that."

"Jefferson," I leaned forward and took his hands in mine, pleading for him not to do this, "you _know_ I can't help you bring it back."

"Whatever do you mean Kendra?" He feigned innocence and I picked up the tea cup and presented it to him. I took a large gulp of it.

"Hatter, I know what you put in this tea, I know what you did to the pasta and I'm very disappointed in you that you feel the need to drug me. Hatter, I can't help you."

A crazed look in his eyes sparked, "You think you can't but you really can, you Phoenixes are _filled_ with powers. I know you can still transform Kendra-what else could you possibly do?"

I yawned and my eyes began to droop as I slurred, "Hatter, don't you think I would have tried already? I can't even get to the other worlds…I can't…bring…magic back," before I promptly passed out, falling into his arms.

-/Tea Shop/-

I woke up in what I presumed to be in Jefferson's Hat Room. My eyes were still drooping but I sat up in the chair anyway, rubbing the tiredness away on my shoulder since my wrists were handcuffed. Dammit Jefferson! He knew that it took a long time for me to heat up my human flesh to escape anything. Footsteps echoed in the distance, coming closer as the seconds passed. My eyes and body were alert and tense when the door opened, Jefferson and Emma barging in. "I don't know what you think you're doing, but if you hurt my friend, I swear I'll make your regret it," Emma threatened.

"Hurt her? I'm saving her life."

"How do you figure that?"

"Don't play stupid," he was backing her up slowly toward my restrained body. "We both know what happens when people try to leave Storybrooke."

"What are you talking about?"

"The curse," I spoke up and Emma swirled around in shock to face me.

"Kendra! What are you doing here? Why does he have you here?" She looked back at Jefferson for answers, "What curse?"

"The one keeping us all trapped. All except you two."

"And Sebastian, why didn't you kidnap him too? That'd be hilarious," I piped up. Emma wasn't paying attention to me.

"You've been reading Henry's book?"

"Henry? You mean the Queen's father?" Jefferson asked an I rolled my eyes. Of course he would only remember _that_ Henry's name.

"No, sweetie, not that Henry. He's been dead for a while."

"Henry," Emma explained, "the Mayor's adopted kid."

"Oh, Henry. Your Henry. And his book of stories. The ones that you choose to ignore. And _you_," he pointed at me, "choose to forget about a lot." He turned back to Emma, "Maybe if you knew what I know, you wouldn't."

"Why have you been spying on me?"

"Jefferson! You can't just spy on people! It's rude and creepy and you're already a creep enough as it is!" I admonished, he gave me a glare before going around Emma. For a moment he held his gun up, aimed at her head, but then he put it down to answer her.

"Because for the last twenty eight years, I've been stuck in this house, day after day," he was making his way around the room, "always the same, until one night, you, and _you_," he pointed the gun from Emma to I, "in your little yellow bug and black motorcycle, roll into town, and the clock ticks and things start to change. You see…I know what you refuse to acknowledge, Emma. You're special. You brought something precious to Storybrooke-magic."

She had this pitying look on her face that made my stomach clench, the hope disappearing, "You're insane."

"Because I speak the truth?"

"Because you're talking about magic."

"I'm talking about what I've seen. I mean look at Kendra." I smiled awkwardly at their eyes on me. "Perhaps you're the one that's mad."

"Really? What does Kendra have to do with this? Really?"

"What's crazier than seeing and not believing? Because that's exactly what you've been doing since you go to our little hamlet," now he stood _really_ close to Emma, "Open your eyes. Look around. Wake up. Isn't it about time?"

"What do you want? What do you want with Kendra and I?"

"I want you-I want you _both _to get it to work," he said before pushing Emma into the chair and dragging mine over to the table.

"You want me to get what to work?"

"The Hat," I answered. He leaned down to us.

"You're the only two who can do this. You're gonna get it to work."

-/Tea Shop/-

Emma didn't know what to do. She looked at the table and back at me and I could see the confusion and worry in her eyes clear as day. Clear as the memories that taunt me.

Jefferson placed a bunch of fabric in front of Emma, "Make one like that."

"You want me to make a hat? You don't have enough?"

"Well, none of them work do they? Or else you wouldn't be here. Or else Kendra wouldn't be make a hat and get it to work."

"I don't-"

"You have magic. You can do it." Emma looked around herself, realizing who he was.

"The hats…the tea… your psychotic behaviour," I chuckled at that, "You think you're the Mad Hatter."

"My name's Jefferson," he replied uncomfortably.

"Okay, you've clearly glommed on to my kid Henry's thing. They're just stories. The Mad Hatter is in 'Alice in Wonderland,' a book. A book I actually read."

"Stories. Story? What's a story? When you were in high school, did you learn about the Civil War?"

"Yeah, of course."

"How? Did you read about it, perchance, in a book? How is that any less real than any other book?"

"History books are based on history."

"And storybooks are based on what, imagination? Where does that come from? It has to come from somewhere. You know what the issue is with this world?"

"Global warming?" I guessed.

"Everyone wants a magical solution for their problem, and everyone refuses to believe in magic. Now get it to work," he replied, pointing the gun at Emma again. I rolled my eyes. Emma was going to but decided against it when she leaned forward, arms resting on the table.

"Here's the thing, Jefferson, this is it. This is the real world."

"A real world."

"There are many," I added. He leaned forward to invade Emma's personal space.

"How arrogant are you to think yours is the only one? There are infinite more, Kendra would know. She can cross over to them. You have to open your mind. They touch one another, pressing up in a long line of lands, each just as real as the last. I know, Kendra knows, her kind knows. All have their own rules, some have magic. Some don't. And some _need_ magic...like this one. And that's where you come in. You, Kendra, and your friend are not leaving here until you make my hat. Until you get it to work."

He placed the scissors on the table and Emma reluctantly began to cut, "And then what?"

"Then I go home."

"And why do you need Kendra?"

"Because she also has magic, strong magic."

-/Tea Shop/-

"I can't make it work! What you're asking me is impossible-"

"NO!"

"Jefferson," I whispered.

"No, it has to be. If it's not, I'm never going home. I'll be cursed to live in this house forever."

"What is so cursed about your life? Look at this place! It's beautiful. I doesn't seem cursed to me!"

"It's cursed because like everyone else here, what I love has been ripped from me. Take a look," he told Emma. And that's when I began to feel the fog settle in. Jefferson's voice dulled in my ears and my skin melted the cuffs off my hands as heat began to overwhelm my body. I stood up from the chair swaying slightly. I could hear Hatter say, "That's my curse."

"To remember," Emma guessed.

"What good is this house, these things, if I can't share them with her?" his voice was broken and my eyes were drawn to the corner of the room where I saw _him_ there, slowly shaping in the dark fog, a web of scattered hushed words filling my ears, a chill creeping up my spine.

"If you really think she's your daughter, why don't you reach out to her? Why don't you tell her?"

"And destroy her reality?"

"Jeff-Jeffer-Jefferson," I whispered, seeing his image clear.

It had been at least a week since I was plagued by him. The sweet relief of his absence made me forget that he had even existed.

"I'm trapped by knowledge. How cruel do you think I am? You think I'd inflict that awareness on my daughter? It's hard enough to live in a land where you don't belong, but knowing it, holding conflicting realities in your head….will drive you _mad_." The figure's face was clear and their eyes were dark, menacing in the light of the room, an evil grin stretched across his face. Peter began to walk closer to me, his hand reaching up, waiting for his fingers to reach and lace across my throat.

"Jefferson!" I shouted, walking backwards and into the chair. My friend looked to me in worry, seeing the panic in my eyes. Hatter sprinted across the room, catching me when I almost fell, and held me to him, shielding Pan away. He cradled my face, making my eyes turn to him. Peter was getting closer, insults leaving his beautiful mouth.

"_I wish you would die already Kendra! But you can't can you," _he mocked_, "That would require someone to love __**you**__-and no one really does, do they?"_

"Kendra, Kendra what's wrong?" Jefferson shook me, trying to get an answer from my closed mouth. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't breathe, I couldn't breathe. "Kendra? Is he here? He's not really here, Kendra, what's happening?"

"Peter," I whispered in fear, my eyes locking with those cruel green eyes.

"_I will __**never **__love you!"_

"Kendra, Kendra snap out of it!" Emma grabbed the telescope out of the corner of my eye. "Kendra-"" Hatter crumbled to the ground with an oof. Peter was getting closer.

"Crazy son of a bitch," Emma said, reaching down to grab his gun. She stood in front of me but my eyes slowly withdrew from Peters. "Nice job, let's go!" She grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the room. We ran down the halls until Emma pulled us into the room, revealing a tied up Mary Margaret.

"Mm!" Emma proceeded to untie Snow but I looked further into the room. There in the corner, stood Peter in all of his glory a smirk on his face.

"_You can't get rid of me that easily, Kendra."_

"Hey, it's all right. I'm gonna get you out here. You're gonna be okay. He can't hurt you anymore."

"Kendra, Emma, look out!" Snow shouted. I sidestepped just in time for Jefferson to sprint into the room wearing his hat and collide into both Emma and Snow. I was paralyzed as Peter inched closer to me, pinning me to the wall and holding his hand to my throat. I couldn't breathe.

Emma and Jefferson began to fight for the gun and at one point Emma got his scarf off. Mary Margaret was busy untying herself during this. And then Jefferson got the gun, scooping his hat up onto his head, and aiming the weapon at Emma all in one movement. Emma stared at the scar on his neck and I struggled to breathe, clawing at my throat.

"Off with his head," I heard Jefferson say before Snow got up, grabbed a stick, hit Jefferson with it, and then kicked him out of the window.

Peter vanished into black smoke.

"Are you okay?" Snow asked, pulling Emma and I to her. Snow surrounded me into her arms and I tensed for a moment when I couldn't breathe, before relaxing into my friend's arms.

"Yeah," Emma replied and I nodded. We inched towards the window and looked out. I smiled when I realized my friend had made it work for a moment and survived. Emma and Snow frowned at his disappearance though.

When we looked back at each other, Emma gave me a look that spoke of having a 'talk' later.

-/Tea Shop/-

We were outside, at the scene of where the hat laid. Emma and Snow shivered at the cold air but I welcomed the cool to my overheated flesh. "There's no sign of him anywhere," Emma said astonished.

"Who was he?" Snow questioned.

"Jefferson," I replied simply while Emma had to say,

"A very lonely man. By the way, have you been taking kickboxing and not telling me about it?"

"I have no idea where that came from," Mary told her shortly. Well at least _I_ knew where it came from. Mary Margaret, Emma, and I all walked down to the front of the house.

"Emma, look!" Emma rushed over to the object that was in the driveway that was covered in a brown tarp. Hmmm, I wonder what that could possibly be? Emma rushed to the car and pulled off the tarp to reveal the yellow bug underneath. She opened up the car immediately and grabbed the keys, presenting it to us.

Emma walked over to Mary Margaret with searching eyes. "So, Sheriff, I guess you'll be taking me back now."

Emma had a serious look on her face before tossing Snow the keys, "Here, go."

"You want me to run?"

"No," she answered quickly, "But it's your choice. Just know something-running ain't easy. I've done my share of it and once you go, there's no stopping."

"Emma, everyone thinks I killed Kathryn," Snow tried to justify and I looked sharply at my friend.

"Mary Margaret, you have to believe me. You have to trust me. I know it seems impossible, but I can get you out of this."

"Why is it so important to you what happens to me?"

"Because when Regina framed me, and you bailed me out, I asked you why, and you said you trusted me. And then when I wanted to leave Storybrooke 'cause I thought it was best for Henry, you told me I needed to stay because that was the best for him. And I realized, all my life, I have been alone. Wall's up. Nobody's ever been there for me except for you. And I can't lose that. I cannot lose my family."

"Family?" Snow had this very hopeful look on her face.

"Friends," Emma corrected, trying to push it aside and I smiled. "Whatever. You know what I mean. Wouldn't you rather face this together than alone?" Snow smiled and gave Emma back the keys. I squealed and hugged Snow in excitement. They smiled at each other and in the distance, the clock chimed. The color drained from Emma's face. "The arraignment. Regina."

-/Tea Shop/-

Emma quickly took Snow back to jail before driving me back to the tea shop. She stopped outside the shop but she hadn't unlocked the door yet. I sighed and sat back in my seat. "What were you doing at Jefferson's house Kendra?"

"We're old friends, he knew me when I was younger. He asked me to stop by so we could chat."

"And when you got there?"

"He drugged me with the tea."

"And….and when we were escaping, during the struggle, why didn't you help. Why were you so distracted near the end?"

"Emma," I warned softly and Emma and I stared at each other for a long time. I sighed once more before giving her an explanation, looking into the shop windows to see Sebastian cleaning the tables with his back turned to us, "For a long time, I've suffered hallucinations. A recurring one includes this man who tries to kill me often. He came this morning and I panicked-can I go now?"

"Um yeah...sure, um feel better," Emma replied awkwardly, clearly unsure of how to react to such a weird explanation. She unlocked the car and I turned back to the Sheriff.

"You know, we can be friends as well. You and Henry are welcome to the shop and you haven't come by yet…..I'd actually like for us to be friends Emma," I told her with hope clearly visible in my eyes.

"Umm yeah, sure, I'll stop bye latter. You sell coffee right?"

"And hot chocolate," I smiled.

-/Tea Shop/-

_Peter's hands were gliding through my feathers and I giggled helplessly. "Peter!" I gasped, "Stop! I'm ticklish!"_

"_And that's why I'm doing it!" he grinned, continuing to tickle my sides and I squirmed in his hands._

"_Peter! Stop! I really must go!" I chuckled, launching myself out of his arms._

"_Why? Where are you going this time Kendra? Wouldn't you rather stay with the Lost Boys and I?" he asked, his eyes shining but sadness was tinged in his voice. I stroked a feather down his cheek, smiling at him._

"_I'll be back later Peter, I promise. I just need to check on a friend."_

"_Who?" he demanded, possession clear in his voice and I almost blushed at that. He almost sounded like he was jealous but I knew he wasn't. Peter couldn't possibly care for me the same why I did for him._

"_A friend-just a friend," I told him after his look. I leaned up to peck at his cheek, "I'll be back before you know it Peter."_

"_Yes, you could be gone for years and it would only be hours here," he muttered bitterly. My eyes were sad as I tried to hug him as best as I could before I jumped from out embraced and into the sky._

_I could leave Neverland without his permission._

_He was always bitter about that._

_I soared into the sky for a few miles until I began to pass through the realms. Blurs of color passed my eyes as I kept going and going until I reached Wonderland. Flying downwards, I soared into my friends workshop. I perched on one of the many high stacks before looking sadly at my insane friend._

"_Get it to work. Get it to work! Get it to work. Get it to work. Get it to work. Just get it to work. Get it to work. Get it to work. Get it to work. Get it to work. Get it to work. Get it to work!" _

_My poor Hatter._

-/Tea Shop/-

I walked into the shop, the bell alerting Seb of my presence. He turned around quickly and at the sight of me, he sprinted over, pulling me into a hug. He held onto me tightly, "I didn't think I'd see you again, Kendra. What happened?"

"I went to Jefferson's."

He put me at arm's length and stared at me with narrowed eyes. "What did Jefferson do? Why were you gone all night? What happened Kendra?"

"He drugged me-"

"WHAT!" he bellowed.

"He was trying to get the hat to work. You remember how he figured that the feather of a Phoenix would allow the hat to work, he wanted it to work and so-"

"So he _drugged_ you!?"

"Sebastian, calm down. He didn't bring me any real harm and I knew he was going to drug me anyway-I could smell it-so I let him because I knew he was having one of his fits. Don't worry Seb, everything is alright."

He didn't look so convinced but I hugged him, trying to get him to forget about Jefferson for a moment.

"I had another hallucination."

He looked confused. "Did they ever stop?"

"Yeah," I whispered, "for a while they did, but he came back today." He held me tighter.

"I hope it wasn't too bad."

I could see Peter in the corner, the dark fog twisting at his feet, I kept my eyes on that evil figure as I answered, "It wasn't the worst one I've had."


	7. Let's Skip Some Episodes!

**Chapter Seven: **The First Sip of Tea

I woke up the next morning in the cocoon of my blankets. I didn't want to get up so I peered around my room. Yellow walls and a dark red ceiling graced me. Cluttered desks and closets out of the corner of my eye and my green laptop lay on the small table next to my bed. Peering over the edge, I was met with dark wooden floors and scattered objects of clothing, books, and candy wrappers. I sighed before pulling the covers off my heated flesh and practically jumping out of my bed to quickly get dressed.

I pulled on a pair of dark jeans, a red tank, and a transparent yellow shawl. With my hair down, feather earrings, and red converse on, I made my way downstairs, swaying slightly and feeling a headache come on to me. I entered the shop to see Seb preparing something and Ruby leaning against the counter. "Kendra!" she greeted excitedly. I nodded in greeting and as I was making my way to one of the bookshelves, she grabbed my arm. The room began to sway. "Kendra! What's up with your eyes?"

"What?" I mumbled, everything began to blur.

"Hey! Hey, are you okay Kendra? Kendra?" she began to shake me and I swayed dangerously. "Sebastian!" My brother rushed out of the kitchen, his blue eyes flashing gold before he took me out of Ruby's arms. "What's happening?"

"Kendra? Kendra, tell me what's happening!" Seb pleaded and I was seeing double. Fog crept up on me like a spider in the night. A prickling sensation covered my skin, a lot like the kind I felt before turning. Seb slapped me and everything was clear for a moment.

"Wha's...happen…ing?"

"Kendra?" his voice was getting further and further and the room darker and darker.

A shadow loomed over us before I promptly blacked out.

-/Tea Shop/-

_A giggle escaped my lips as I looked at my mother. "Mommy, what are you doing?" I asked excitedly, seeing her hunched over the fire. Her green eyes looked back at me in mirth. _

"_I'm making tea of course Sere!"_

"_But why are we outside, Mommy?" Silly mommy, why can't we go inside? Silly mommy, doesn't she know there's a fire inside?_

"_Serephina," the blonde haired woman whispered, pulling me to her and showing me the fire, "We're not making tea inside because then it wouldn't be special!" I looked back at the manor behind us. My brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, father, and grandparents all lived inside the gigantic house. None of them were out here though._

"_Why isn't Jonah here?" I asked, referring to my older brother. Jonah was my favorite. _

"_Well, I didn't want to show Jonah this, I wanted to show you this silly!" she tickled my sides and I laughed helplessly. My six year old mind didn't care anymore why Jonah or Hailey or Freya or my other siblings weren't here. I looked back at the fire, the flames mesmerizing to my youthful eyes and I reached forward to cup it. My mother slapped my hands away. "Don't touch the fire Serephina!"_

"_Why not?"_

"_Fire is dangerous sweetie, don't __**ever **__play with the fire okay?"_

"_Okay."_

_A few minutes later, I stared in awe as steam began to escape the brown clay teapot. My mother handed me a cup and poured in the amber liquid. "Don't drink yet, it's hot," she warned and I smiled up to her._

"_One day I'm going to make the best tea in the whole world! One day you'll be so happy to drink my tea!"_

"_I already am Sere, I'm already happy to drink your tea." I smiled up at my mother with all of my small teeth._

-/Tea Shop/-

_A little more than three years later I was playing down by the river. I hiked up my blue dress and watched the fish pool at my feet in the shallow water. Mommy didn't know I was here but Jonah was just a little bit further down the stream fishing. My blonde hair was hanging loosely around my face and I twirled around, watching it spin with me._

_Suddenly I was pushed in the water and I was drenched. As payback to whoever pushed me, I grabbed them as I fell, forcing them to fall in as well. When we got to the surface I was spluttering water and so was my attacker. I wiped the water away from my eyes and came nose to nose with a boy just my age. I didn't know who it was._

_I screamed._

"_Hey!" he whispered, putting his hand over my mouth, "Don't fret! I wasn't looking. Sorry to fall into you!" I yanked his hand away from my mouth._

"_Who are you?" I demanded furiously, standing up and towering over his form. He had dirty tanned skin from playing in the woods, scars littering his hands and legs from thorns, dark black hair with a twig sticking out here and there, and hazel eyes. _

"_Romulus!" he greeted with a cheerful hand, "And you?"_

"_Serephina."_

"_Hi! Sorry! I didn't mean to bump into you! I was just running around and I saw the stream and I guess I didn't even __**see**__ you which is a surprise because you're pretty and WAM! I just ran into you!" he laughed before his voice got soft and he flashed me a grin, "Sorry again."_

"_It-it's alright," I stuttered, my mind latching onto him calling me pretty! He got up from the water, his trousers and shirt-more like rags-drenched in water. And then my eyes narrowed in on him. "Wait, why are you on my father's property?"_

"_Oh," he blushed, he began to stutter, "I was-I mean I needed-well I was hungry and I saw the pe-peaches and I-I-"_

"_You wanted some of the peaches?" I asked, head tilted to the side. He nodded after a moment and I smiled, grabbing his hand and dragging him back to the shore. There was a small bundle of cloth that was wrapped around some peaches. I pulled back the cover and presented them with glee._

"_Wow! You have so many! And they look so good!"_

"_Do you want some?" I offered and Romulus nodded enthusiastically. I handed him a few, looking down at his thin frame, "You definitely need them."_

_He smiled in thanks._

-/Tea Shop/-

_It began to be a thing between us. Meeting by the river at least once a week and I always brought some food with me. This went on for years. By twelve we knew everything about each other. He knew I loved tea and that even though I had a large family, I felt like the outcast for being the youngest. I knew that he was an only child and with just an old and sick mother. I knew that his favorite time of the year was when the peaches were in bloom, when the water was clear and warm, when all we had to wear was loose clothing against the summer heat. I knew that he was poor and me feeding him every week was probably the most he'd ever get._

_I knew he could swim, fish, sow, hunt, and sneak around. He knew that I would probably get married in a few years. I knew he'd get to marry out of love to another poor woman that would probably bake or sell tea. This fact saddened me whenever I thought about him loving another. _

-/Tea Shop/-

_The sky was rich lavender when he kissed me a few more years later. The water glistening, a soft summer breeze, and our fingers grazing the grass. My heart fluttered fiercely as he gave me one of his dopey grins. Blushes covered our skin but we smiled anyway and continued to watch the sunset. Dark would come soon._

"_Momma doesn't want me to come around anymore." I turned sharply to him at his saddened voice._

"_Why?" I demanded._

"_She thinks I need to pay more attention to getting a job then hanging out with you."_

"_Rom, don't listen to her, I like talking to you."_

"_I do too."_

"_So you'll be here next week?"_

"_Yes."_

_I kissed him before I left, heading back to the manor and leaving him to his thoughts._

-/Tea Shop/-

_There was a harsh storm one night. Rain pouring down and the river flooding. I slipped out of the back door unnoticed, a basket of apples in my hands. I met Romulus down by the river; he was leaning against an old willow tree. His arms were crossed, eyes dark, and he didn't look up when I approached. "Rom-"_

"_What are we doing Phi?"_

"_What?" He turned to me darkly._

"_I mean us? What are doing? There can't be an us!"_

_I looked at him in confusion, "What's wrong Romulus-" he pushed me up against the tree._

"_I mean you're going to get married soon aren't you Serephina? You're of age, there's only a matter of time, Sere. We can't be together!" he growled, he tore himself from me._

"_Yes. We. Can! Why can't we?" I asked, pleaded with him as I approached. "I __**love**__ you Rom, why __**can't**__ we be together?"_

"_Because!" he roared._

"_Because why?" I demanded, tears streaming down my face, pushing him, "Why not Rom? I love you, you love me," I walked forward, he kept going backwards, "Let's run away together!"_

"_Serephina," he whispered softly, wiping my tears away, "We can't leave my mother here, she's old."_

"_I know," I sighed before wrapping my arms around him. "I know," I muttered in his chest. _

"_Let's go back under the tree," I nodded in his chest and he began to move forward. _

_It happened all so fast._

_The ground wet and slippery and we were too close to the edge. As soon as Romulus began to move, he slipped, and dragged me in with him into the rapid, deep, and overflooded river-a lot like when we first met. I gasped when we fell under and we struggled to swim when we breached the surface. We were being pulled into the current and we couldn't fight it. "Romulus!" I shrieked. _

_He dragged me as best as he could to a low branch. My hands latched around the thin but sturdy limb. I gasped, trying to cough out the water. "Sere, are you oka-"_

_The branch wasn't sturdy, no it wasn't sturdy at all. It broke and Rom wasn't prepared for the fall. "Romulus!" I screamed._

_He didn't come back._

"_Romulus!"_

-/Tea Shop/-

_They fished his dead body out of the river a few days later. My mother took me to his burial as well, having known for a long time that we were friends. I had sobbed into her arms for hours and for a long time she didn't know why I was crying. I bought a peach to his burial, placing it on the mound. "YOU!" an old woman bellowed as I walked away. I turned around and her finger was raised to my face. I knew just by her eyes who she was: Romulus's mother. "You killed my son! I told him not to go and you killed him!" she shrieked and my mother grabbed me, ushering me a long. "You killed him! You killed my son!" she wailed, her voice scratching at my ears harshly. "You'll pay for this! You killed him! My only son and you killed him!" _

_I turned around, pleading with my eyes and voice as I said, "I'm so sorry for your loss, it was an accident, believe me, I'm sorry he's dead. I loved him very much so."_

"_NO! No if you loved him then he wouldn't be dead!"_

"_I'm-"_

"_You awful girl! You killed my son! __**Commoriatur in occidente sole**__," she began to chant in a language I did not speak and my mother ushered me away but her voice followed me like snakes, "__**hic factus est in avem ignis, devastantem amant, oculum pro oculo, sed animam pro anima, Solus vivat in aeternum, corde contrito, volucri igne morieris, cor tuum, laeduntur, sed anima tua non peribit, Solis avi, fractum tantum mori!**__" A feeling of dread washed over me as my mother dragged me up the street. When I looked back, I saw the woman on the ground. _

_Dead._

-/Tea Shop/-

_Later that night, my mother handed me a cup of tea and left to go upstairs. All of my family was asleep and I stared absentmindedly at the fire, the tea cold. I fingered the small necklace that hung on my neck; a gift from Romulus on my birthday. After a few hours of my stomach rolling, thoughts churning, and tears welling, I sighed and stood up to go upstairs. And that's when I felt it, an itch. A painful need to scratch at my back. With one hand, I pulled my arm around and let my nails rake at my skin._

_And then I pulled something out of my skin._

_A long elegant feather laid in my hand, a gradient of yellow to red and orange and blue veins here and there and it burned in my hand. A gasp tore from my throat and I dropped both the cup, shattering it, and the feather. All over my body I began to feel these feathers harshly protruding from my skin, a never ending itch. Heat flushed over my body, ember like feathers tearing and burning my clothes, and scorch marks licking at my paling flesh. A broken and choked cry escaped my lips and I held my face, desperate for the pounding in my head to disappear only to feel my hair begin to fall out of my grasp. Blonde locks fell to the floor with small flames burning at their roots. I fell to the ground, curling into the fetal position, and then crying as the pain increased._

_Each tear held burning oil and my fingers grew into talons, clawing at my skin. The sharp edges tore through my flesh and hot blood spilled out like lava. I wailed as I felt it, my body changing._

_My body began to shrink in on itself and the feathers began to increase, all over my body they laid. And when it was almost done, as my wings were beginning to shape from my arms, I let out a cry that turned into a squawk. Fire began to circle around my body, rising further and further up to the ceiling, across the floors, and up the walls only to envelope the rooms and spreading like the wildfire it was. I could hear the cries of my family, the smoke choking them. I could hear the ceiling begin to concave, trapping them in the flames. I could hear their wails for help and the fire destroyed everything into ashes and I wailed with them._

_When morning came, they were dead and I was left curled in on my own body. Snowy ash breezed with the wind and all I could smell was burnt flesh, tea, and peaches._

-/Tea Shop/-

My eyes opened up blearily in the dark. A cold cloth was planted on my head and I felt a hand in my own. What little clothes I wore and thin blanket stuck to me from sweat. I twitched and then I felt hot fingers touch my cheek. I looked up to find Sebastian staring at me worriedly. "Kendra," Seb whispered and I gave him a soft smile.

"What happened?" I rasped. Seb presented a cup of water to my lips and I drank greedily from it.

"You passed out. You've been out for a few days. You had a fever, tremors, lots of hallucinations that I doubt you remember, and kept scratching at your skin."

"Okay…" I stared at him in worry, "But why did that _happen_?"

"I think…I think you're body knows that something is coming."

"Like before the curse?"

"Like before the curse," he agreed. My eyes widened in worry.

"Seb what's coming? What's happened while I was gone?"

"I think magic is coming back Kendra."

Although I should have been excited, a feeling of dread washed over me.

-/Tea Shop/-

_Centuries later, three incarnations into my life of a phoenix, I began traveling once more. I had spent a long period of time in Wonderland, the Enchanted Forest, and a few years in the land without magic. I had learned over the years a few things about us Phoenixes._

_First, none of my kind wanted me since none of them came to me._

_Second, I couldn't die, and I learned from legends that only a broken heart could kill us and it would have to be the one we were mated to to break our heart._

_Third, I couldn't turn back into a human until after a few more incarnations._

_Fourth, we could travel between worlds._

_And fifth, we were unaffected by magic._

_And as a given for firebirds, we were immune to fire and heat. Which is why it was so funny that when I landed on a tree in the land called Neverland, that some idiot tried to throw a fireball at me. I laughed when I easily dodged it and I began to look for my 'attacker', scouring the dark forest of palm trees. I laughed even harder when I spotted him out of the corner of my eye. It was some idiotic teenaged boy who thought he had me cornered which was even more stupid even if his lips were tilted into a smirk._

_He lunged for my body and I flew above him before crashing into him on purpose. He fell to the ground and I sat on his back with a smirk of my own before he flipped us around and held my thin neck in his hands. "Who are you?" he demanded and I chuckled before giving him a large scratch with my talons on his wrist; forcing his hand away. I flew up to one of the branches and leaned forward with another smirk._

"_Kendra," I introduced. As I smoothed out my feathers I asked, "And you?"_

"_Peter," he replied, his eyebrows quirking, "Peter Pan."_

"_I would say it was nice to meet you Peter Pan but then I'd be lying since you thought you were capable of suffocating __**and**__ capturing me."_

"_And you think I couldn't?"_

"_Of course not!" I crowed with a smile._

_This Pan fellow was quite interesting._


	8. Hee Hee We're At The Season Finale Eve

**Chapter Eight: **Apple Turnovers

_It was beautiful, the land they called home, the land that gazed before me. "What do you call this place brother?" I whispered as I peered out of Sebastian's chest, the sobs finally beginning to subside. This place…it was magical. It calmed me and made me feel this warmth that felt good against my skin, not like when I was forced to bear the heat of the flames that slashed at my body. No this warmth reminded me of when my mother held me to her chest and sang soft lullabies._

"_Home," Sebastian continued to call it before looking down at me. His smile was crooked and goofy but it made me feel better, "But mortals generally call it Paradise." _

"_I can see why," I muttered. Absentmindedly grazing my fingers through his feathers, I gazed at the scene before me. Feelings of content and peace washed over me in soft, caressing waves and I began to feel myself pull together again. Seam by precious little seam, I was sewed back up as I reveled in this beautiful place._

_I didn't even notice the shadow that watched me from the corner of the scene._

_How was I supposed to know he'd be the first Shadow?_

-/Tea Shop/-

Seb filled me in on what had happened when I was gone from the world. Since then, we've both been feeling these intense surges of magic coursing through us at the most random moments. My ability to bring fire to my fingertips began to be so common and easy that my moods began to revert back to the flames. Crackles of heat sparked when I was angry or annoyed, light flames coating my fingers. I'd become extremely cold when I was saddened and flushed with warmth when happy. Seb's eyes were often gold and he seemed to be losing his grip on his magic like me. He watched me worriedly, waiting for the feathers that festered beneath my skin to protrude harshly at the surface.

We were waiting for my blood to shed.

But Sebastian and I continued on with the shop. We served the tea and pastries as we counted down the seconds with anticipation. Nervous and fearful and excitement and I could see Seb watching Ruby so often nowadays. His eyes yearned for her I knew-I could tell-and the way he was looking at her was probably the same as how I looked out of a window in moments of silence and stillness, when my mind often wandered.

When I often thought of the bittersweet past.

Snapping out of my daze, I poured myself another cup of peppermint tea, hoping the coolness would soothe my pain. I handed Sebastian the cup when he finally looked away from the oblivious Ruby and he gulped it down, needing the same effect. We both sighed before simultaneously reaching for the other to hug. This time, the searing heat of our skin calmed us down. "God we're hot," I muttered,

"I know, we _do_ look fabulous," he chuckled and I swatted his back before groaning.

"When Seb? _When?_"

"Soon, Kendra, very soon. You feel it too, right?"

"God, yes, it feels like the first time I turned."

"Into a Phoenix or back into a human?"

"Both. God, this itch is so _frustrating_! And there aren't even feathers coming out!"

"You're skin is crawling, back is aching, and your limbs won't function correctly?" I nodded my head in his chest, "I know Dra, I know how you feel, God I feel it most days."

I growled in his chest, snugglin in deeper before letting out another sigh. This was going to be a while.

-/Tea Shop/-

_It had been a centuries since I had left them behind in the snow. I didn't know what had become of my friends in the past decades but I knew that when I returned, it would be only a few hours. Time between the realms was odd and the land of Paradise was the strangest, oddest, and most complex of all. We lived on a time completely separate than most and so every few hours for them could have been a lifetime for us._

_It had been a reincarnation for me and that reincarnation had been filled with family and love and sowing back my aching heart. Sebastian, my brother, helped the most and I would forever be grateful to him. He held me through those nightmares and hallucinations, knew everything about me and nurtured me back to health. He is the best brother I could ever have. _

"_Brother," I smiled one day as I landed next to him._

"_Yes sister?"_

"_I was wondering…"_

"_Wondering…?" he pegged and I shot him a shy smile._

"_If we could go to the Enchanted Forest."_

"_You mean the realm we saved you from?"_

"_My friends are there and I'm very worried for them." He nodded in hesitant acceptance and grasped my wing in his own, pulling us off the rail we rested on and down to the ground, shooting through the skies and past the realms._

-/Tea Shop/-

Mary Margaret called me to her home and I came as soon as possible with a smile, having missed my friend in the days of our separation. "I've missed you so much!" I exclaimed when she opened up the door, jumping into her arms.

"I've missed you too, Kendra," she laughed and I held onto her a bit longer before letting her go, presenting her with the small bag of hot chocolate mix from the shop.

"You're a free woman and I'm not sick-let's celebrate!" I crowed and she chuckled, letting myself into her kitchen. I turned on the kettle and back to my friend who smiled once more at the sight of me. "So where's the Sheriff?"

The smile on her face was wiped and I Immediately began to worry. "She ran off." My smile disappeared and then the door opened. I watched as Emma awkwardly came in and put her bag on the ground. "Oh," Mary Margaret began to wipe the counters, "Thought you'd left."

"Mary Margaret-"

"But I couldn't tell for sure because you didn't bother to say goodbye."

"I'm just going to go to the bathroom," I said before making a dash out of the tense room hearing Snow say,

"Do you remember when I left?"

I wanted to ask her if she remembered when I left for those few hours and came back a changed being. But then I remembered how, no, she didn't remember, none of them remembered, and then I continued on.

-/Tea Shop/-

"_You're getting slow Sebastian!" I crowed as I landed in the woods. My brother landed softly behind me and we both transformed into our human forms. His blue-golden eyes narrowed at me before he playfully swatted me. _

"_I was only going slow for your sake!"_

"_Of course you were," I laughed and I began to sprint through the woods, giggling when I heard him trailing behind me. The others were up ahead and I was excited to hug my friend once more._

"_We're going to have to get over that wall," I heard Snow say when we reached them. They hadn't noticed us yet and I grinned at Snow's 'battle mode'. "There's a soldier on every parapet."_

"_We're gonna need some air support," an older woman, Granny I assumed, said._

"_Air? I know just the person who can help us, someone who owes me a favor."_

"_Well you could always have asked us!" I announced, coming into their sights and they drew their weapons._

"_Who are you?" Snow demanded and I felt Sebastian tense. I forgot that they hadn't seen me in this form before._

"_Relax," I told her, presenting my now flaming hand, "It's me, Kendra." Snow sucked in a breath of surprise._

"_Kendra?" Snow gasped and I bowed deeply._

"_Snow, it's been forever," I smiled before pulling her in for a warm hug._

"_Hours at most-where've you been, I thought you were captured by the queen!" Sebastian growled._

"_I was," I replied matter of factly, "It's been a long time since then."_

"_What do you mean? Who's this?"_

"_My brother, Sebastian," at her look I clarified, "Another Phoenix. They finally came to me, they rescued me and helped me heal. I'm better now." Snow smiled and at the sound of another snapping twig, they drew their weapons once more as Seb and I conjured fire._

"_Don't shoot it's only me," Red said as she came out of the clearing and out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sebastian's flame flicker wildly for a moment before being controlled once more._

"_Uh, Red, you know, you got someone on your chin," Grumpy said before I jumped at her._

"_Red!"_

"_Kendra?" she gasped, holding me to her chest. "I've missed you, where did you go I was so worried?"_

"_I was captured and then the Phoenixes saved me! I've been with them for a century or so in their realm."_

"_Is he one of them?" she asked and I looked back to see a very tense, wide eyed, and jittering mess of my brother._

"_Yeah," I smiled coyly as he shuffled forward, extending his still flaming hand._

"_I-I-I'm Seb-Sebastian," he stuttered and his flame quickly went out when she reached for his hand. _

"_Umm Red," she introduced and I laughed quietly to myself as his eyes flashed golden before I stopped, seeing her's flash as well. Oh my…was she really…? Wow, the first girl outside of the Phoenix clan that he met and he already found his soulmate. Wow…__**Sebastian**__. Oh, and he was a stuttering mess too! It would be so easy to toy with him now! I grinned wickedly before looking back at Snow._

"_We can totally help with the air, but feel free to call in your favor Grumpy." The dwarf nodded._

"_What were you able to find out?" Snow asked Red._

"_Your prince is still alive." I looked around in confusion and Red clued me in, "After he saved Snow, he was captured once more."_

"_Then why don't you look happy?" Snow asked._

"_Because I also heard word the Queen is here." Seb tensed harshly and I held onto his hand, trying to get him to calm down._

"_She knew I'd come for him."_

"_It's a trap!" Granny exclaimed but Snow kept her cool._

"_Indeed. It matters not. I can't stop now. But I'll understand if any of you want to turn back." _

_Choruses of "No!" and "Not a chance!" rang out._

"_Oh," she let out a sigh of relief, "Well, then there's no time to waste." The group nodded before heading off to their positions._

"_Why is the Queen doing this?"_

"_I destroyed her happiness," she explained, "And now she wants to destroy mine."_

-/Tea Shop/-

_We stood idly in the distance of the castle, waiting. And, after the many moments of nervous anticipation, we heard the howling in the distance from Red. "Thank you Red," Snow muttered before she gave her command, "Do it." One of the dwarves lit an arrow on fire and Snow said, "Move out." _

_And then we were leaping into the air, jumping out of our skin and Sebastian and I began to change back into our Phoenix forms. My feathers quickly bloomed across my body and my hair fell out into flames below and my body curved into the form of my beast. And we were spreading our wings, soaring high above into the sky with a trail of smoke to show that we were once there. Sebastian's majestic form flew above me as we sped through the night sky and to the battle below._

_Breathing fire on those that opposed us, we were all synchronized. A twisted beauty as we shed the blood and destroyed our enemies with a quick succession and unity. When we had finished attacking the square and grouped back together, we were surrounded once more. And that's when I heard the buzzing. Sebastian and I grinned, bursting up into the air just as the fairies reached before turning back around and throwing balls or fire as the fairies threw their dust._

_I never liked fairies all that much but when grouped together with a combined fury, they were scary as hell. I grinned at Seb._

-/Tea Shop/-

After awkwardly leaving Emma and Snow to their quarrell, I decided to visit my dear child August. God was he a mess when I got there but he smiled at the sight of me. I smiled back and held his hand, feeling the wood there. That smile turned watery. "August," I muttered, pushing back his hair as he laid back down in the bed.

"Kendra, is it…is it coming back?" he asked with hopeful eyes and I nodded. He let out a sigh of relief.

"But I don't know when," he told him, feeling a tear slip out, and he shushed me.

"Its…" he coughed, "...going to…be alright." I nodded and soothed down his shirt.

"Yeah."

"Just don't…light up around me," he joked and I laughed sadly.

"I won't," I promised and he smiled once more. There was knocking at the door and we looked at each other.

"Hang on," August called and I helped him get up, knowing that he wanted to move. There was another knock before August was able to open the door.

"August, please, I need your help," Henry pleaded and I raised my brows as did August. We let him in. "Emma wants to leave." Henry told us as he entered the room.

"What?" I asked, Henry shot me a wave. I mean I knew she ran off but I didn't actually know really what happened.

"Slow down," August told him.

"You were gonna make her believe. You have to," the boy pleaded.

"I know, Henry. I'm sorry. I…I failed." I rubbed August's back as he looked down sadly at the boy.

"Failed?"

"I tried to show her." I looked at him quizzically but he continued on. "At first it was my legs, and now...know take a look…at the unvarnished truth," August panted as he pulled down his sleeve and I helped him keep standing.

"It's wood," he said in amazement.

"Yes."  
"Uh...all of this...I was right. The curse-it's real!"

"Yes, Henry," I beamed.

"You're a smart kid," August added.

"And you're Pinocchio!"

"What gave it away?" I smacked him in the arm. And Henry turned to me.

"You can see it too?" I nodded at him, another smile playing on my lips. He turned back to August, "But why are you turning back to wood? Your story-you should be real."

"I'm changing back because…I haven't exactly been a good boy. And…" he fell to the ground, "Well…if the curse doesn't break, this doesn't stop."

"So we show Emma that you're turning back into the puppet you were, and then she has to believe, and when she does, she could break the curse."

"I tried that. She doesn't _want_ to see, so she doesn't. There's nothing more that I can do. I-I'm getting tired. It's hard to ride and it's hard to walk. Soon it's gonna be hard to breathe."

"So we have to do something fast," Henry concluded.

"But there's nothing to do. And with what little time I have left, I _want_ to spend it with my father."

"Marco."

"Told you you're a smart kid." I helped him stand up and lead Henry to the door.

"So everyone's giving up."

"I'm afraid that I don't have a choice. I'm sorry, kid, but I'm out of Operation Cobra. Now it's up to you." He patted his back and Henry walked out sadly.

"I'll see you later." I kissed August's cheek and he nodded before I left. I caught up with Henry, knocking shoulders with him. "I'll help you, Henry, I won't give up."

"Thanks Kendra," he smiled up to me sadly. "Hey, you never did tell me who you were."

"I'll give you a hint," I smiled and I watched as his eyes widened in amazement as a curl of fire escaped my fingertips.

-/Tea Shop/-

"_Stop trying to talk me out of this. The castle is secure. I'm going," Show told us as she removed her weapons and man she had a lot of them stored on her body._

"_Keep the little knife between your tuffets," Grumpy said._

"_I promised I would come alone and unarmed. It's a parley. There are rules."_

"_You're too noble for your own good."_

"_I'm not, but enough of you have risked your lives because of something that's between the Queen and me. I will not let anyone else get hurt because of me."_

"_Except you," Red replied._

"_Thank you for your concern, but this ends today." Snow moved to leave but the Dwarves blocked her path._

"_We can't let you go."_

"_I'm not asking. Thank you for your support. I love each and every one of you, but this is something I have to do...alone," Snow replied in finality before brushing them aside and leaving the room._

"_I don't like this," Red muttered after her, "I don't trust that queen."_

-/Tea Shop/-

Henry was flicking through his book as he absentmindedly drank his hot chocolate. "Fire, fire, fire…..where are you?" he muttered and I smiled, wiping down the counters once more as Seb raised his eyebrow at us.

"What's he looking for?"

"The story of us."

"That sounds way too cheesy and romantic for my liking," he replied distastefully and crept towards him.

"Awwww you poor baby, does sugar bear need to give you a hug?" I cooed and he cringed when I flicked his nose, shuddering as he scampered away.

"No!"

"I love you too!" I called as he left for the kitchen.

"A-hah! Kendra! I found you…wait your name is really Kendra?"

"Of course it is kido, if you look further into my species you'll notice how we can travel through the realms."

"Which is why you escaped the curse and remember," he concluded and I nodded in affirmation.

"Yup!" I replied, popping the 'p'. Henry looked back down at the book and soon enough he was engrossed in my story, trying to understand every detail.

"Why is this so sad?" He muttered and I gave him a small shrug and smile before turning back to my work.

"Who's story isn't?"

-/Tea Shop/-

_We had been searching for her everywhere and we (as in Granny, Red, and I) eventually tracked her to some stables. "Snow was here," Red sniffed, "I can smell it."_

"_Snow! Snow!" we called._

"_She's over here!" Grumpy called and we ran. At the top of the hill, we found Snow sprawled on the ground, still. Sebastian held me to his chest at my horrified look._

"_I found her lying here like this. Is she-"_

"_Granny, give me your dagger." Red commanded, grabbing the offered blade and placing it to Snow's nose._

"_Maybe she's just sleeping," one of the dwarves speculated hopefully._

"_She has no breath." Red cried and I let out a small sob, squirming in Seb's arms. "She's gone. She sacrificed herself for true love."_

_The words:_

"_**Save Snow White, help her remember, tell her that sometimes sacrifice is the best void to fill!" **__ came flashing through my memory and I grasped onto my brother for support. "Dra," he whispered, holding my burning back, "Dra, calm down."_

"_She sacrificed herself for all of us."_

_Gasoline tears slipped out of my eyes once more._

-/Tea Shop/-

Sebastian and I sat down for a drink after closing up the shop. He was drinking white tea while I drank black. "I'll never get over this stuff," I moaned after taking a sip and Seb chuckled at me.

"You never cease to amuse me."

"And why would I?" He shrugged and we sat in silence for a few minutes, enjoying the flavors dancing across our tongues, before I looked up at him, "So what are you going to do?"

"For?"

"After the curse, when she remembers, are you going to tell her?"

"Tell her what?" he sighed.

"That you two are Mates!"

"Kendra, these things are very delicate-"

"Oh shut up Sebastian, I know they're delicate. Are. You. Going. To. Tell. Her?"

"Maybe."

"What do you mean maybe? She has a right to know!" I shouted.

"Don't raise your tone with me-"

"No, Seb! You keep running away from this! Tell her!"

"Kendra!"

"If I ever meet Peter again, I'd tell him straight away what we are."

"No you wouldn't Kendra," he shut me down, "Kendra, you and I both know, that the next time you'd see Pan, you would either start bawling or throwing punches." I stared at him in fury before shouting,

"Seb!" and laughed, clutching my sides and spilling the tea on the table, "Oh god…you're so right though," I got up to go put my cup in the kitchen, "Wow…that's just so accur-"

I dropped the cup.

Our laughter stopped. I grasped my sides in agony as Sebastian ran to my side. "Kendra, Dra, what's happening?"

I choked on my own words before grabbing harshly at my shirt, tearing at it furiously, and clawing at the skin of my back. Finding the spot, I tugged harshly and presented the object to Sebastian.

There, in my fingertips, was a bloody feather that burned like a fire and pulsed with life and heat.

I turned to my brother, "It's coming Sebastian."

"It has literally been one day since you woke up!" he groaned and I patted his back.

"There, there, get me some peppermint tea and let's go watch a movie or something."

"Why?" he whined.

"Because dammit, Sebastian, magic's coming, and I really just want to watch some Sherlock before all of that goes down."

"Fine…..I'll bring up the ice cream as well."

"Good boy," I patted his cheek.


	9. A Land Without Magic

**Chapter Nine: Green Tea Nicked With Our Memories**

_RING! RINNNNNNNGGGGG! RING-ri-RINGGGG! _

"_Shut_ up!" I groaned and I felt Seb twitch underneath of me, slowly waking up like I did. I fumbled around our bodies in the dark room, searching for my phone. We fell asleep watching the third episode of season two.

_Ring ring! RING RING RINNNNGGGG!_

"Alright alright!" I found my phone and opened it up, "Yes?'

"Henry's in the hospital."

"What?" I gasped, sitting up at Snow's panicked voice. Seb groaned loudly underneath me.

"He's unresponsive, no one can wake him up," it sounded like the sleeping curse, "And Emma and Regina have both disappeared." Awww fudge, Emma knows-wholly shit Emma knows!-But does she believe? I still had my doubts. I sat up straighter, making Sebastian go 'oof'. "And who's with _you_?" The suggestion was clear in her voice.

"Ew, it's Sebastian. Don't get any weird ideas Snow-so Henry's in the hospital?"

She was silent but I knew she had nodded.

"Okay, I'll be over as soon as possible-god what time is it anyway?"

"Seven, he got there around six."

"Holy shit why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I didn't find out till six thirty when Emma had disappeared and finally called to tell me!"

"Okay, I'll be there soon, I'll bring Sebastian as well."

"No," he whined, "Let me _sleep_."

"Fine you lazy butt," I told him before turning back to Snow on the phone, "Nevermind, _I'll_ be over soon."

"Okay, Kendra."

"Bye, Snow."

"Bye."

I got up, smacked my brother in the head to make him suffer (he whined pitifully), and made my way to the shower. Halfway through scrubbing my hair, I realized that I needed to see August. Cursing again, I called MM back and told her I'd be by in a half an hour. Without thinking, when I finished, I pulled on a tank, shorts, and a light jacket, slipping on my black converse and running out without even a goodbye to Seb. I ran down the street like a lunatic but the reminder of August propelled me to go faster.

I needed to see him before he turned completely to wood.

Rushing up the stairs of Granny's, I crashed into-"Emma!" I exclaimed, surprised to see her here.

"Kendra?! Kendra…what _are _you?"

"What?" I asked dumbly at the blonde woman and then I knew just by looking into her eyes; she believed. "Oh my god! You actually believe it now! Awesome! Yeah…! Oh my god, Henry! Is this-is this the reason why he's in the hospital?" She shifted uncomfortably in her spot and I decided to give pity-to my annoyance- "August! Got to get to August!"

Emma nodded and we ran up to his door, knocking on it harshly. "August, please open up. I know you're in there. Open the door."

"I can't," his voice spoke softly and the color must have cleared off my face because my heart clenched painfully and I threw open the door. August laid on his bed, stiff and his wooden arm across his chest as he struggled to breathe. I held a hand up to my mouth in growing horror at the sight.

"No," I muttered aghast, crawling towards his body.

"What's happening to you?" Emma asked,

"You can see it now," was all he said and I crept onto the bed. "You believe," he whispered as I slid my body next to his, holding him and hugging him to the best of my ability. I was crying soft now, hot gasoline tears scorching at his shirt and the bed; he didn't even notice.

"Yeah. I do, but…h-how do I stop this?"

"You can't," I muttered into his shoulder as he said,

"Break the curse."

"I'll try. I promise, but I gotta save Henry first, and I need your help," she told him, sitting on the bed.

"No, you don't," and a sob tore from my throat at his statement.

"Yeah, I do. This is all too much. I-I just…talked to the Evil Queen and Rumpelstiltskin about a quest to find magic. I can't do it, August. I can't. No normal person can."

"Luckily for us, you're not normal," a chuckled escaped my throat as I nuzzled his wooden neck, "You can save Henry. You can save all of…" he trailed off.

"August?" at her voice I shot up and looked at August. A wail, a sob, a cry, everything that comes from a broken woman seeing her family die escaped my lips and my soul as I held his frozen eyes and body into my arms.

Emma steeled herself after a moment of crying and I held to the man who I cared for like a child more than a friend as she walked out of the room; to go save us all.

"August," I murmured, stroking his wooden hair as more tears fell out, singing his hair.

I stayed with him for a long time.

-/Tea Shop/-

I went to go be with Henry and Mary Margaret a while later. Wiping tears viscously and coming to a stop in their room. I sat down by the bed and pulled the book out of her arms for a moment, flicking through the pages. When I spotted my story I smiled sadly before going to a different page and handing it back to Snow. "Read this one," I whispered and she nodded, reading about Snow White and Prince Charming.

"…And yes, she was beyond hope, beyond saving," the woman spoke and I brushed Henry's hair back, patting his hair down and rubbing at his cold cheeks, "This was her end. When Prince Charming saw his beloved Snow White in her glass coffin, he knew all that was left was to say good-bye. He had to give her one last kiss, and when he did, True Love proved more powerful than any curse. A pulse of Pure Love," I remembered this, "shuddered out and engulfed the land, waking up Snow White, and bringing light to the darkness."

I fidgeted in my seat, twiddling with his fingers as Snow stopped to hold his hand.

"Henry…" she started, "When I gave you this book, it was because I knew…I now life doesn't always have a happy end…But I thought-" The heart monitor was beating rapidly and my heart picked up its pace. My body warming dangerously and my eyes were surely flashing golden as I flickered back in forth between the monitor and Henry frantically. "What is it?"

"Dr. Whale?" I yelled.

"Doctor Whale what is that?" Mary Margeret asked when the man and many nurses came in after him. "Wha-what-what's wrong?"

"Nurse, get them out of here now!" Whaled demanded. They ushered us out.

"What is it?" I demanded, being dragged out of the room, fighting them, wanting to rescue Henry.

"His heart rate's falling," I heard Whale say, "Come on, Henry."

"_Nurse to the I.C.U., STAT._" was spoken over the P.A.

"Henry," Whale muttered and more and more nurses came in, we were dragged away from the scene.

"_Defibrillator team to I.C.U._

_Defibrillator team to I.C.U._"

-/Tea Shop/-

_I was flying across the realms. I thought that if I reached my realm, I could find answers to Snow's illness. But as I was coincidentally flying over Neverland, the pulse of True Love hit me. I knew what it was just by the feel of it, it was what I could have felt a long time ago. So it hit me, literally, like a frisbee and knocked me off my course._

"_Oh fuuuuc-holy shit!" I cursed as I plummeted to land below. "Crap, crap, crappity crap crap-god dammit wings work!" They wouldn't work of course and I landed, like the meteorite, hot flaming out of this world stuff, with a circle of debris curling around my body. _

_And then I promptly passed out._

_Hours later, after my body healed and consciousness found me, I opened up my tired eyes to find familiar ones staring back at me. Not really thinking straight, I swiped my talons at their face and was rewarded with my wrist caught by their fingers. _

"_Kendra it's me!" the boy exclaimed and I tried to wipe the sleep from my eyes before mumbling,_

"_Felix why'd you sneak up on me…? Pan would have your head for messing with my beauty sleep…" I didn't even know what I was saying._

"_Kendra he'd have my head for just seeing you and not killing you on sight," he replied and my eyes shot open, reality rearing its ugly head into my memory._

"_Oh right," I mumbled before shedding the feathers, turning human once more. Felix shielded his eyes from me and then I realized the state of undress I was in. He threw me his cloak and I summoned a long tunic. When I looked back at him, he was staring at me in both awe and fear._

"_You're…human."_

"_You were there the first time," I reminded bitterly and his eyes softened._

"_Yes…and I…I mean I'm sorry that…I mean-"_

"_Felix," I shushed and his eyes were glued back to me, his soft grey eyes. "It's alright. How are you? How are they?" We stood up and began to walk around in the clearing. I traced the scar on his face with sadness and anger._

"_Bad, awful, blood thirsty…it's barbaric and some of the boys have even started to think you were just a figment of their imagination."_

"_How long has it been for you?"_

"_A few hundred years or so I think."_

"_Same, and Pan?"_

"_Sadistic, a bastard, evil, cruel, a broken image-he's sick, that's how I was able to get to you before him."_

"_Sick?"_

"_Mentally and physically, we came back from a hunt this morning and he just collapsed, I felt this warm feeling wash over me before that though."_

"_True Love," I explained and at the look on his face I knew he didn't get it, "When the first kiss of utterly pure True Love between two souls. It generally occurs when one is endangered and they send their hearts out to them. It also happens somewhat at first connection."_

"_Is this a Phoenix thing? You never told us about that during your stories at the fire," he asked, referring to the times long ago when I'd tell bedtime stories to the Lost Boys._

"_Sort of. Both our eyes and our mate's eyes tend to flash a blindingly golden color at the first sight of love. The kiss…well I don't know and Sebastian is too much of a chicken to find out."_

"_Sebastian?" he asked as we reached the edge of the cliff._

"_My brother," I smiled, "I found them, I found my kin."_

"_Hadn't they abandoned you?" he asked distrusting in them and I took his hands into mine, peering up into his eyes._

"_No, they just weren't able to get to me ever-the curse of mine." He nodded shamefully at bringing up that sore topic and I pushed his chin upwards for him to look at me, "It's okay Felix, I'm willing to talk to you about anything-remember that-now, tell me, when did that happen?" I asked, pointing at the scar gracing his cheek. He mumbled something under his breath, looking away, "What was that?"_

"_After you left, immediately."_

_I pulled him into my arms and cradled him, "I'm so sorry. So, so, so, so sorry, oh Felix, what have I done?"_

"_It wasn't your fault-"_

"_It was my hallucination."_

"_But I didn't snap you out of it and I will forever pay for that!"_

"_Felix…"_

"_I should have realized what was happening and gotten Pan, I should have stopped you somehow, I should have-I should have-"_

"_**I**__ should not have had that happen, because of me you got that scar, because of me you all don't get to hear my stories, because of my actions I have ruined the greatness that could have become of us."_

"_I would take that scar for you a hundred times over Kendra, it was not your fault, it was a very large collaboration of you, me, and Pan."_

"_You don't call him by his name anymore." I said suddenly._

"_He's not Peter anymore," he replied._

-/Tea Shop/-

I walking down the street alone, MM and I separating a while ago, and just kept walking; a bit numb from two of my friends dying and that's when I felt his hand in mine. It was just as calloused as I remembered it and I looked at his shadowy dark fingers laced into mine. I looked up, coming face to face with a dark fog with a glowing white smile blooming out. "Hi," he said and I was shocked…he sounded…_shy_?

"What are you doing here?" I asked miserably and he shrugged.

"You brought me here, you tell me."

"I didn't _bring _you here!" I practically shouted, "I _never_ summoned you."

"Of course _you_ don't summon me during _those_ times…but you wanted me here and so I came, this is the first time that happened."

"So you're here?" I asked, "You're here because I actually want you here and because of that, you come with warmth?"

"Yes, it's a form of me and yes, that is why I'm here."

"A form of you?" I asked, a tear trailing down my face and he hastily wiped it away, his image becoming more pronounced and less foggy.

"I'm the good memories you have of me and what could have potentially derived from that happiness."

"So the other you is the one created from the bad," I concluded, understanding the way it worked immediately, "So you…so you are what could've happened."

"Yes."

"What...do you feel for me? What do you want from me?" I asked-_needing_ the hole and constant question of if he could love me to be filled with an answer.

"I…don't think I'm allowed tell you."

"Please Shadow, I need to know, I need to know if any form of Peter could ever love me."

"Kendra," he whispered, wiping the many fire tears from my skin, regardless of the burns that would take home on his fingers. "There will _always_ be a Peter Pan who'll love you."

"Yes?"

"Yes," he told me, pulling my forehead to his lips and planting a cooling kiss on my skin, it went all the way to my toes. "Always," he breathed when he rested his head on my shoulder, whispering it into my neck. "Forever," he muttered near my ear before pulling back. I could make out his eyes now, the green twinkling once more at me.

And then another pulse of True Love raced through the town and into my body, destroying the image in a flurry of memories.

-/Tea Shop/-

_We sat on the ledge of the cliff as the sun dipped into the water in the distance, pink and lavender and the dark blue taking home in the sky. Felix and I sat closely, our legs swinging against the edge and fingers laced. _

"_I've missed you," I whispered, disrupting the peaceful silence._

"_I missed you too," he replied and I smiled, before feeling the sad tug of reality pull on my mind. Suddenly, I reached out for his body and crashed ours together._

"_I have to leave," I muttered and he began to clutch onto me._

"_Don't leave, he's a monster know without you."_

"_I can't stay, then we'd surely die."_

"_Don't leave me here with him."_

"_I can't take you with me," I told him sadly, "You know that."_

"_Kendra...he's just so awful and cruel and Kendra, don't leave me here, I don't want to be like him: full of indirect hate and cruelty, filled with evil."_

"_I have to leave, Felix," I cried and we held desperately for each other know, "I don't want to leave you here with him, but I'll come back, I promise. It may be days or years or centuries but I'll be back and I'll fix this-I'll save you, I'll save all of the Lost Boys."_

"_Why not today?" he asked, his tears landing on my head._

"_Because today I want to hold onto my best friend, the boy who is scarred for me, the boy who I love and cherish. Felix, I will come back for you, you deserve as much."_

"_I just don't want you to leave."_

"_I don't want to go but I have to protect my kin and help as many people as I can, what's the point of living forever if I don't do anything?"_

"_In another life…"_

"_In another life Peter Pan and I would be in love and you would find True Love and everyone would be happy and there'd be disputes now and then but we'd smile and laugh and in another life I wouldn't have met Romulus." _

"_Then you wouldn't have met Peter."_

"_And then where would True Love be?"_

"_What does that even mean Kendra?"_

"_I don't know but Felix, we live in this life and in this life we are best friends with a now monstrous friend and I will come back for you and we'll drink tea and you'll meet Sebastian, so just wait."_

"_I will, I'll wait forever if I can get out of this hell hole with you."_

"_And one day, we may even fix up Peter."_

"_And we'd be happy?"_

"_We __**will **__be happy."_

"_Okay," he conceded._

"_Okay."_

_We hugged once more._

-/Tea Shop/-

The curse was broken.

The curse was BROKEN.

THE CURSE WAS BROKEN!

I looked around the town with amazement as people began to regain their memories before promptly sprinting to the tea shop. Seb was going to be so excited, he'd finally get his Red and he'd be happy and-

Oh my god.

There, in the middle of the road, stood Seb and Red in a passionate embrace, kissing the life out of each other, sending another pulse through the town of True Love and at first I was surprised. I wasn't however surprised that it appeared that Red had pulled Seb into the kiss but wow…he was _really_ getting into it.

Eww was that even legal to be doing in public?

Being the annoying little sister that I am, I began to wolf whistle at the sight of them and they broke apart quickly in surprise before catching the sight of me. Seb was glaring daggers as I was pulled into a hug by Red. I stuck my tongue out at him and reciprocated before we bursted out in laughter. "God I've missed _you_," I told her and she smiled before letting me go, turning around, and slapping Seb across his cheek harshly.

"Ow! What was that for?!" he cried as he cradled the tender flesh.

"For not waking me up sooner you dufus!" she shouted before thwacking him on the head and arm.

"Ow-stop that!-Why aren't you hitting her?!"

"Because we all now that she'd try to get you to do it and then you'd shut her down-at least she tried! You were like this kind of creepy guy that I knew-"

"-And you were attracted to!-"

"And now I'm stuck with an awkward buffoon who doesn't know when to listen to his sister! Or common sense!" she hit him some more, each time he flinched.

"Sorry! Sorry! I promise the next time-"

"Oh the next time! Do you have something planned Sebastian?"

"No! I'm not planning anything!" he immediately conceded and he squirmed under her gaze and when she glanced at me she winked and I smirked, watching as she dragged him for another kiss to his surprise. When they broke apart he leaned to her ear, "There are a few things you need to know now that you're a Phoenix Mate."

"Same applies to a Werewolf Mate," she giggled and averted my gaze in awkwardness, spotting in the distance the purple fog approaching.

"Sebastian," I said suddenly and I could see him out of the corner of my eye turning quickly to me. "Look." And I pointed to the purple fog descending upon us. He dragged Red and I into his chest, holding us to him as the dark clouds swept onto us like a tsunami.


	10. Magic Returnssssssss!

**Chapter Ten: Magic Tea? Anyone? No one? Regina?**

As the fog began to disappear, I felt a rush of power and magic surge through my veins, that itch on my back increasing tenfold. Red gave Seb one last kiss before running into the arms of Granny. Seb and I stared at each other with wide eyes filled with amazement, relief, and fear before hugging each other harshly once more. "Oh I'm so glad the curse is gone," I muttered into his chest and hummed in agreement.

I saw Snow and Charming coming our way with their hands locked. Red looked away from her grandmother and smiled, "Snow?" They laughed before embracing wildly and then Snow saw me.

"Kendra!" she dragged me into their embrace and I smiled. They held onto me for a moment longer before pulling away in shock, "Wow you're hot."

"Well I'll take a compliment any day," I replied cheekily but we both knew we were talking about my skin so we both smiled. We were all laughing, sharing hugs, and smiling as the dwarves piled in. Seb and I held onto each other once more.

"Your highness?" Leroy asked before they all bowed simultaneously. Then they hugged-wow lots of hugs going around today. "The Curse? It's broken?"

"It would appear so," Charming replied and I looked up at Seb with a smile but found him mooning over Red. I chuckled.

"So what do we do now?" Red asked with a blush, finally noticing Seb's blatant staring.

"Now," Snow began to answer, "Now I find my daughter." And BAM Emma just appeared out of nowhere with Henry. I sighed in relief at his smiling face.

"So it's true," the mother wiped around quickly to her daughter. Snow slowly inched closer, tears in her eyes as she was reunited with her daughter once more, looking at how big she had grown. Snow cupped Emma's face as if she couldn't believe it was real before pulling her into a hug.

I could hear the tears in her voice as she whispered, "You found us." Emma looked slightly-as in a lot of uncomfortableness-awkward in that hug and as Charming slowly, shakingly, brought a hand up to her hair before hugging her as well.

"Grandpa?" Henry asked from behind and they started laughing somewhat hysterically.

"Yeah, kid," James/David/Charming/Prince-what was I supposed to call him-replied, "I suppose so."

"She did. She saved you," the boy smiled.

"She saved all of us," Snow added.

"I…well…"

"Uh, then why are we still here?" Dreamy decided to ask, sassy as ever.

"That, my friend, is an excellent question."

"And what was that smoke?" Sneezy asked.

"Who did this?"

"And what was that smoke?"

"And why?"

"And what was that smoke?"

"Magic," Mother Superior decided to intervene and I tensed beside Sebastian. I never did like fairies, they always thought of themselves as the superior species and the do gooders of life when talking to humans or other species but in the face of us…well they always backed down and that made me uncomfortable. Seb felt the same way at times. "It's here. I can feel it, can you Sebastian and Kendra?"

"I'm itching," was my only reply.

"Hi," Blue greeted to Snow and Charming.

"Magic? In StoryBrooke?" Henry appeared, "You're the Blue Fairy. Do something magical." Why do they always ask the fairies first?  
"It's not quite that simple, Henry." Blue replied.

"Ehhh," I scoffed and they all looked at me. Seb rolled his eyes as I raised my hands and conjured a flame. Mother Superior glared before turning back to Henry. Okay maybe I was a bit of a show off.

"No wand, no fairy dust. Matters are complicated now," she told him. Yeah, complicated like your hairstyle-how did you even get those curls to stay like that?

"Let's go to the person responsible for bringing it-the Queen," Leroy decided.

"Yeah," a chorus of agreeance rang out between the dwarves. "Yeah, the Queen. Yeah, let's get her."

"No. Wait." Emma rejected, "It wasn't Regina."

-/Tea Shop/-

"Is there anything you want to ask us?" Snow asked as our group walked in the middle of the road-which is dangerous by the way-on our journey to find Rumple, "You must have questions."

"The only questions I have are for Mr. Gold." Ouch, that stings. "Why did he double cross me? And what did he do to this town?"

"Uh…shouldn't we talk about…_it_ first?" this was not the conversation to have with a whole group surrounding them.

"What?" Emma tried to be oblivious. I rolled my eyes, you can't get out of these kinds of conversations with Snow.

"Us?" she prompted, "Your life? Everything?"

"Can we do 'Everything' maybe later, like, with a glass of wine…and several bottles?"

I looked at Sebastian, "Can I have a noose to get out of this awkward conversation?"

"You and I both know that wouldn't work," he chuckled and I groaned.

"I know it's a lot to take in, for all of us." Charming told Emma.

"No we're good," I said, pointing between Seb and I, we got a few glares from the dwarves.

"And we don't want to push," Snow ignored me, "but we have waited for this moment for so long."

"Yeah, so have I!" Emma explained and we all came to a stop.

"I really don't want to be here," I muttered to Sebastian, "It's like going to a friends house for a sleepover and then your friend and their parents start fighting and you feel so uncomfortable." He laughed quietly, poking me in the side to-

"Stop talking."

"I've thought about this moment my entire life," Emma announced, "I've imagined who you might be. But of all the scenarios that I concocted, my parents being…" Snow looked crushed. "I-I just need a little time, that's-that's all."

Then we heard a crowd in the distance, "Snow." We saw a bunch of people charging across the street, Whale I believe, leading them. Dr. Hopper-Archie?-ran up to us.

"There you are," he said slowing to a stop, "Come with me. I need your help. Dr. Whale's whipped everyone into a frenzy. They're going to Regina's house. They're gonna kill her."

"Great. Let's watch," Grumpy replied and I rolled my eyes, thwacking him on the back of his head.

"No. No, we cannot stoop to her level," he vehemently rejected. "No matter who she is or what she's done. Killing her is wrong."

"He's right."

"I agree," I added.

"Please. She's still my mom." Henry continued and I brought the boy into my arms, whispering,

"I'll help you."

"We have to stop them," Emma conceded.

"If the Blue Fairy is right and magic is here, Regina could have her powers back," Charming reasoned. "They could be marching into a slaughter." They all nodded and we began running.

I smiled at Seb and he rolled his eyes as I sprinted, jumped in the air, and shed my skin, turning into the Phoenix I was and whizzing past my friends, breathing fire into the air in glee.

-/Tea Shop/-

"She's powerless!"

"Get her!"

"Don't let her get away!" They all began to close in on Regina and Whaled backed her up into the pillar and was just about to choke her when I came in, breathing fire to force them back, and landing on the porch.

"Let her go!" Emma shouted, pushing aside the mob, "Let her go! Let her go!" I bared my talons threateningly at the crowd and snarled, warning them to stay back. Emma pushed Whale out of the way.

"Why should I listen to you?"

"Because I am still the Sheriff," came Emma's reply to his question.

"And because she saved you, _all_ of you," Charming added.

"And because no matter what, Regina did, it does not justify _this_," Snow came in.

"I _will_ throw a fireball," I muttered, staring at them before glancing down at my feathers. God, I missed these. I inspected the gleaming colors of fire that was attached to my body in awe. I didn't even have to look up to know that Seb was smirking at me.

"We are not murderers here," Emma told them.

"Well, we're not from this world," he replied smartly.

"Yeah, well, you're in it now."

"Okay, Whale we're done," Charming decided.

"Back off," the doctor snarled, "You're not my prince."

"Who are you, Whale?" I looked up from inspection of my feathers to inspect Whale's figure. He seemed familiar…I'd just have to think about it, search through my memories, to find out who he was.

"That's _my_ business."

David scoffed, "Well, _my _business. Is making sure this town doesn't go to hell. So whether or not I'm your prince isn't the issue. We have a lot to figure out, and this isn't the way to do it."

"And Regina's death _won't_ provide any answers," Snow interjected, hand held in the air as if to stop them. "She needs to be locked up for her safety, and more importantly, for ours."

-/Tea Shop/-

They decided to lock Regina up in the jail and I turned to Sebastian. "I need to go to home."

"Okay," he replied, "You do realize you don't need to tell me when you want to go back to the shop."

"No I mean _home_-Paradise, Seb."

"Oh…oh-OH! Paradise, Paradise, any reason as to why? I mean I understand you wanting to go back but-"

"I want to talk with Tara."

"_Tara_? Why do you wish to speak with her?"

"You know why," I gave him a look and he nodded in acceptance. He looked back at Red. "Go to her, you have lot's to talk about." He blushed but nodded, I leaned up to kiss his cheek. "I'll try to get back as soon as possible."

"Be safe," he replied and I nodded, before turning around and flying away.

-/Tea Shop/-

_**SEBASTIAN'S POV**_ (**Author's Note: OH MY GOD GUYS OH MY FUDGING GOD!**)

I looked at Red, blushing at the beauty before me and she smiled back at me, making her way towards me. She pulled me in for a kiss, and I took it greedily, connecting our lips once more. And it felt like Paradise, warmth and love and affection, the sun shining down on us and the cold chill disappearing from our flesh as we continued to touch and smile.

"I have been waiting to do this since the moment we meet," I murmured against her lips as we broke apart for air, our foreheads touching.

"I know," she replied.

"Did you now," I chuckled and she nodded, pulling me in for another kiss. Sparks probably happened, that tended to happen.

When we broke apart she looked up at me, her molten eyes boring into my own, "You had something to tell me?"

"Oh!" I exclaimed, surely blushing horrendously, "My name, I have to tell you my name."

"Your name is Sebastian, I already knew that," she laughed.

"No, I mean my _real_ name."

"What?"

"No one but you and I will know it.."

"What? Why? Why would only we know it? What about Kendra?"

"Red, our real names hold immense power over us. Once you learn it, you could literally bend me to your every whim. Only our Mates are deserving of such a name."

"Really?" she whispered, eyes wide, rose spreading across her cheeks.

"Yes, only our Mates should know them. But sometimes, very unjustly if I say so, someone else can learn our true names, like with Kendra."

"What happened?"

"The Evil Queen-Regina-well she captured Kendra whilst in a state of mind where she was very vulnerable. We don't get vulnerable Red, not easily, but Kendra…well Kendra's fragile and she has the state of mind that humans do: too much damage and you could break the mind. So when the Queen had her, she looked into her eyes, they had shown with all of her soul, and in looking into her eyes, Regina knew everything about her. Her entire being scarred across her mind and no way of shielding it."

"So she knows her name."

"She knows her name, but we came and rescued her and we swore war against Regina if she ever spoke it."

"Do you know her name?"

"I do, our entire family knows her name-a disgraceful thing, but we knew her name the moment she became one of us, the moment we saw her, the moment I laid my eyes on her."

"Does she know that you know it? Have you used it against her?" Red demanded, eyes going wide and worrisome, fearing for her friends free will.

"No, we'd never," I replied furiously, not at her, but at the mere idea of it. "It would be cruel and inhumane, only in situations of dire need would we be allowed, but if we did, we'd be trialed by our family for punishment no matter what."

"You guys take this very extremely."

"Red," I tried to explain, needed for her to understand, "If you know the name of a Phoenix, then you have the control over an immortal warrior who can kill and destroying_ anything_ if you ask of it. I trust my name with you because you are my Mate and I love you and I know that you would not take this responsibility lightly. I trust you."

A tear rolled down her cheek and I wiped it quickly away, cupping her face afterwards and staring deeply into her own. I leaned forward, peppering kisses across her forehead, nose, cheeks, eyelids, chin, and mouth, anywhere on her skin. "What's your name?" she whispered softly, trembling in my arms as the weight finally hit her. I pulled her close, breathed in her scent, and leaned towards her ears.

"Adelphe."

"Adelphe,"she breathed, testing it on her tongue before we turned to each other, brushing our lips together. "Adelphe," she sighed.

I hummed, feeling the buzz and warmth fill my body with each syllable that fell out her mouth. "Red," I whispered, like a prayer.

"Adelphe," she chanted.

We kissed once more and I felt whole.

-/Tea Shop/-

I was fighting the Qui-shen or the Wraith if you will. Emma Swan, Regina Mills, Snow White, and Prince Charming disrupted Red and I while we were…_consummating…_the relationship. Blushing all the way during the conversation due to my breathlessness and the things Red decided to touch across my body regardless of the phone, was all it took for me to feel extremely uncomfortable and embarrassed as I met up with the four.

They all gave me strange looks and I dutifully looked away.

So we were fighting the Wraith and they called me in as to help deal with the fire situation since I _was_ a fire breathing, wielding, throwing creature. And as we fought with the species I hated with a passion, always distasteful little things, I had the most interesting thought pop in my head.

"Kendra would've _loved _this."

And that's when the portal began to finally work and the Savior and Snow White fell in after the demon. Today had been an all around interesting day.

-/Tea Shop/-

_**KENDRA'S POV**_

Flying felt so good on my feathers, air gliding through the warm tresses, cooling my heated body. It felt amazing, passing through the realms, twirling in their skies, and smiling at the freedom I felt. God had I missed this.

Stupid curse.

Eventually though, I found myself in Paradise. My kind all gathered around quickly and we all hugged at our reunion, cheers of the curse broken and my return, and questions of Seb's whereabouts and my returning. "Do any of you know where Tera is?" I asked eventually and they all quieted down.

"Tera? Why do you need to speak to her?" Uriah asked, his almost white feathers trailing behind him as his sharp, warrior eyes scrutinizing me.

"Uriah, what would my business with Tera be?" I replied back and he pouted.

"I just wanted to know what you wanted with my wife," he grumbled and I smiled. Uriah and Tera were one of the few couples of Phoenix that were of the same species. They were cute and adorable together; the warrior and the fortune teller.

"I just want to ask her some questions." He nodded and told me that she was at home. I thanked him before I flew up to their little home, on the branches of one of the trees, built within it. I knocked once and it opened softly. I entered the darkened room and the aroma of incense and fire filled my nostril with every breath, calming my nerves. I sat down on one of the pillows and raised my eyes to Tera. She stared down at me with her piercing golden orbs and her feathers cascading down her body in white waves, red and blue peeking here and there out of her old body. Tera and Uriah would meet their new reincarnation soon. "I come seeking guidance."

"I know," she smiled and leaned across the small table, linking our talons together in an embrace.

"I wonder about the future."

"I know," she rolled her eyes before smiling, "You wonder about that boy."

"No!" I sputtered, a blush crawling across my cheeks.

"Yes, you do, don't lie," the older woman replied sassily and I sputtered some more. "You want to know when you'll meet again."

"I actually came here to know about the fate of the residents of StoryBrooke," I protested weakly.

"Of course you did, they'll be fine. Humans are stronger than they look. I mean look at you, now back to that boy…"

"Tera!" I exclaimed.

"I've always loved thinking about you two, so much drama, so much romance, it's just so juicy!"

"Tera!"

"Anyway," she continued, ignoring me, "You'll reunite soon-"

"Soon!?"

"Yes _soon _girl, and it'll be hilarious but you'll fall deeply in love-"

"I doubt it," I scoffed, she whacked me upside the head.

"Deeply in love! I prophesize and it will be true-you are Mates after all. And that other boy…what's his name?…Felix! He'll find love too, it'll just be weird and you'll be very confused and you'll all be awkward until very much later when a bunch of events occur and then happiness."

"Just like that," I said disbelieving.

"Just like that," she replied matter of factly and I sighed, getting up. When I was about to turn, she pulled me in for a bone crushing hug and chuckled. "I'm gonna miss you so much."

"What do you mean?"

"You'll be back and when you do come back it won't nearly be as joyful."

"Oh."

"I can't see what will happen after that, when you'll visit us after that one, but hopefully it'll be happier."

"Hopefully."

She smiled and we held each other for a long time.


	11. Why Does Regina ONLY Give Henry Cupcakes

**Chapter Eleven: The Bitterness In My Mouth**

I landed back in StoryBrooke many hours later after a long flight, filled with mulling thoughts. When I swept through the town, it was in disaster: cars on their sides, trees broken, glass shattered everywhere, and people inside, waiting out the storm that had already passed as if when they opened their eyes once more, the town would be back in order. I transformed back into my human form at Red's feet, just as she was putting out the closed sign. "Red!" I exclaimed excitedly, throwing my arms around her in a tight hug.

"Kendra!" when I pulled back she was blushing horrifically and I could barely catch the scent of Sebastian. I smiled coyly.

"Well that was quick." Her blush only increased by a tenfold. "So…." I looked around at the damage, deciding to save my tormentous jokes on my brother, "What happened here?"

The smile wiped off her face with a snap. "While you were gone, something happened."

"Red," I warned, telling her not to sugar coat or delay the inevitable.

"A Wraith came," the blood surely had drain from my face, "And Regina banished it back to the Enchanted Forest but…"

"What, Red? What happened?"

"It took Snow and Emma back with it to our world."

I stared vacantly at the broken branches behind her, thinking.

-/Tea Shop/-

I found Seb in the chaos that was the town. The town square was filled with refuged people in a panic. I hugged my brother and he whispered everything he knew in my ear along with soft hushes of condolences and words of a forbearing conversation that would take place later. When we let go I nodded and smiled, him pushing the hair back from my face, and we let our worried glances reach the other's eyes. "It'll be fine."

"I'm going to go back."

"What? No!"

"If their world is still in existence, which I believe it is, I'll be the messenger."

"I'm going with you-"

"No," I cut off, shaking my head, "You need to stay here, protect the town."

"But Kendra-"

"You have a Mate to look after and I'm trusting you with Henry's life."

"When did you two become so close?"

"You know why I must protect him." He sighed and I rolled my eyes, giving him a smile before making my way to Henry who was sitting on some crates. "Boo!"

He practically jumped but he calmed down at the sight of me, "Kendra! You're back! Where'd you go?"

"Paradise," I smiled and he looked confused.

"Paradise? Where's that?"

"It's our home, now scooch over," he complied and I sat down next to him, "Whatcha readin'?"

"Actually, I was just looking at your story."

"Were you now, find anything interesting?"

"There actually isn't that much, it's strange, you barely got a page and all it does is list the attributes of Phoenixes and your involvement in the wars."

"Hmm, yes, that sounds about right. They don't really put me as a main character because I'm one for a different story."

"Like Frankenstein?"

"Like Frankenstein."

"So what story is it for?"

"Well, there's only a few copies still in existence of this version of the tale, but it's-"

"Henry!" Charming called and we both looked up, Henry got out of his seat, "Have you seen Blue? Mother Superior." David Nolan was a man on a mission.

"No, but everyone is looking for you," Henry told him.

"Do we know where Rump-Mr. Gold is?" Red asked.

"Wait, does the Queen still have power?" Archie questioned.

"I thought I would find my boy," Marco told sullenly. I got up from my seat and wrapped my arms around the older man. He looked uncomfortable but took it. He came into our shop every Wednesday for some green tea. "Are the lists complete?"

Charming began to run.

"He's gotta be planning something!" Henry exclaimed.

"Hey," Whale started, stopping David, "Let me ask you something. Are the nuns still nuns, or can they, you know, date?" Whale, ever the manwhore.

"Uh, I don't know." David was confused, "Blue!"

"Don't say it's me asking," he muttered as we ran to the fairy.

"Could there be a tree on this side?" Charming later explained, "The way we sent Emma through as a baby-maybe I could go after 'em that way."

"It's possible," her perfect curls still perfect, "But without fairy dust to guide us here, uh, no it's hopeless. Kendra? What about you?" she pointed at me and David looked at me for the first time, just realizing I was an option.

"No, you know I can't. Phoenixes only have the strength to carry their own bodies across the realms and if we could, it'd probably only be to get to Paradise and with our _Mates_." David looked defeated.

"You'll find another way." Henry told us. "In the book, things always look worse right before there's good news."

As if on cue, Grumpy shouted out, "Terrible news! Terrible news!" The crowd parted to them like the red sea, "We were out at the town limits. Tell 'em who you think you are, Sneezy!"

"Will you stop calling me that? You know who I am. I'm Tom Clark. I own the Dark Star Pharmacy. What's going on here?" My fingers lifted up to my face in horror.

"If you cross the border, you lose your memory all over again."

"And coming back doesn't fix it?" Archie asked.

"If it did, would I have come running in yelling 'Terrible news'?!" the dwarf snapped."If we leave, our cursed selves become our only selves."

Everyone began to murmur in fear at the news.

-/Tea Shop/-

"Do we know that anything's gotten out that way?" People were shouting all over the place, throwing Charming question after question. I stood silent behind Henry, holding his hand.

"I wonder if Mom knows," Henry shouted.

"Help! We need help!" the crowd roared.

"I can help!" the eleven year old exclaimed.

"Don't leave us here!" they clawed as Charming moved. "We need something now!"

"What do we do?" Leroy wondered.

"People!" the prince shouted, "Everybody!" They all went silent and Henry's grip on me tightened and I felt Sebastian's warm palm slip into mine. "Everybody, meet back here in two hours. I'll tell you my plan to fix everything."

Charming left the murmuring crowd and Red, Henry, Seb, and I all followed after him. "What's the plan?"

"I don't know, but I got two hours to figure it out."

Charming kept going, leaving Seb and Red behind, hands clasped together.

Henry and I followed him.

-/Tea Shop/-

"People of StoryBrooke," David started and I rolled my eyes, taking another sip from my teacup, god I needed the soothing peppermint, "I know we're trapped again and things look…bleak…but…they're not." He put his arms around his head, losing the idea.

"No, keep going," Henry encouraged, "You were on to something."

"No, I wasn't," the man sighed, moving to the kitchen. "I did the fighting. Snow did the talking." Charming reached into the brown bag and pulled out The Hat. I sat up in my seat and Henry narrowed in on it in recognition.

"Can I see that?"

"Yeah." Henry took hold of the ripped and torn and matted hat and I felt sympathy for what it had gone through.

"I think I know what this is."

"I _know _what that is," I told them, they ignored me, going on their rampage and getting out the book. He flipped through a bunch of the pages until he landed on Hatter's.

"It's the Mad Hatter's Hat. It's a portal between worlds."

"Ding ding ding!" I exclaimed in cheer.

"Mad Hatter."

"You've heard of him?"

"No. I mean, yeah. I mean, the prince-me doesn't know him, but David had memories of reading _Alice in Wonderland_ in school." I sighed, taking another large gulp of the scalding liquid, "I need to get it to work again. Who is he? I mean, who is he here?"

"I don't now."

"It's Jefferson," I announced and they looked up at me in interest. It astounded me that they didn't realize how much I knew, "Jefferson, has a daughter named Grace, went by Paige here, he's a good man, loves his daughter."

"Do you know where I can find him?"

"I would say his mansion but with the curse broken and me having been gone the past few days and not having spoken to him in a while, he could be anywhere. I'd look for a man in a long coat and a scarf covering that nasty scar on his neck."

"Maybe he'll check in at the crisis center," Henry suggested, turning to David, "You could check after the thing."

"What thing?" he asked absentmindedly.

"The meeting where you tell us all your plan? Remember the speech you were doing?" he supplied, trying to jog his grandfather's memory.

"Right!" The prince grabbed the hat and reached for his coat, slinging it on."I'll be back for that." He headed for the door. I got up from my seat and followed Henry after David.

"Gramps, you gotta use me. Come on!" the younger man pleaded, trying to get some of the action. "The curse was broken 'cause of me! Let me help!" he called. The door closed and Henry turned and headed straight for my open arms. I rubbed his back,"Or not."

"There, there, you'll get your share of the fun later."

-/Tea Shop/-

"So what was that book again?" the boy asked as I made him another cup of hot chocolate.

"Well…I think I'll save this story for a rainy day."

"But Kendra!" he whined, pouting up at me.

"Or maybe I'll just make you search for it by yourself." He groaned long and loud.

"At least give me a hint!"

"It involves Phoenixes," I told him mockingly before walking out of the door to get to the meeting. He quickly followed.

"That's not fair!"

"Life isn't fair!" I muttered back bitterly and we made our way down the street to the Town Hall.

-/Tea Shop/-

Everyone was a buzz in the Town Hall, milling around in worry, and Henry was trying to get into contact with the very, very, _very_ late grandpa. "Come on, Gramps. Pick up." he tried for the fourth time, "Come on. Come on."

"Please everyone just be patient," Ruby called.

"I'm sure he will be here any moment," Sebastian added. Those two were inseparable now.

Red came up to Henry, "Try calling him again."

"He's not picking up," Henry told her.

"Just keep trying," the werewolf encouraged.

And the doors of course opened up to the magical powers of one Miss Regina Mills, the Evil Queen, the mayor, yadda, yadda ya, the witch(-more like bitch.) And she looked sassy as she did it. Surprisingly everyone got into line.

"My, what a nice turnout," she said snidely, walking forward with all of the power she knew she possessed, "No need for a fuss. It's just little old me."

"Regina, think about what you're doing," Archie pleaded-yep, definitely the town's Conscious.

"_Bug_," she snarled before throwing him off the ground with a flick of her wrist.

"Hey!" Leroy shouted, charging up to her and she responded the same way with Archie: flicking him away. And then Granny decided to aim her crossbow at her, shooting an arrow, but Regina (like I knew she would) caught it and put it on fire.

"How sweet," an evil smile taking home on her face. She threw the bolt of fire out of the way and everyone ducked as I grabbed it and threw it back, hitting the large plate behind her with a grin and a raise of the brow. Regina rolled her eyes.

"What do you want?!" Red took a stance and Seb held her hand next to the woman, defiant and willing to fight for any threat of his Mate.

"Me." Henry announced, getting up from his spot and making his way forward. "She wants me," he made his way to Regina and I let him, knowing she would never intentionally hurt him, "Okay, I'll come with you. Just…leave them alone."

Regina smiled, walked forward, cupped his chin, and sighed, "That's my boy." Before putting her arm around him and walking them out. I gave her a look as she passed me and she quickly looked away, shutting the doors with the wave of her hand.

-/Tea Shop/-

Red and I started searching for David, trying to find our leader for the time being. We first saw Jefferson run past us and then David at Granny's Dinner. "David, stop!"

"Get out of my way!"

"Regina has Henry!" I exclaimed, pushing against him with Red's help to stop him from running once more.

"But he has the way!"

"She has Henry."

"She's threatening everyone," Red added. That made David stop, giving up the sprint.

"She has Henry?" he asked, hopeless.

"She showed up at you town meeting-the one you missed. Her magic's back, everyone is panicking. They want to leave town. they're going to lose _everything_."

"Okay. Okay, but I have to go after him first. He's my only hope of finding a way to get Emma and Snow back."

"Listen to yourself!" I exclaimed, annoyed at his disregard for the total population.

"Okay, back to what?" Red asked, challenging him. "This town is about to come apart. You've gotta do something."

-/Tea Shop/-

"I'll watch over Henry, you guys go stop them from leaving."

They nodded and we parted, running our separate ways.

-/Tea Shop/-

"Look what I could do," Regina told Henry in his room as I perched quietly on the window sill, back in my Phoenix form. Regina conjured up a really big cupcake with loads of frosting.

I _wanted _that cupcake but I still rolled my eyes.

"And I can teach you. You can do this and so much more. You can have all the friends you want come over anytime, and you can show them everything in your book."

"Oh please Regina," startling them, "No one will want to come over here with _you_ threatening the populace."

"Yeah, they're scared of you, no one will be my friend because of what you did."

"You can make them not be scared," there was a tense pause with me glaring at Regina's form before she amended with, "You can make them love you."

"That's not love honey bun," I sing songed.

"I don't want that," Henry told her, nodding at me. "I don't want to be you." Henry got up from his spot and I flew after him, perching on his shoulder, nuzzling his cheek. He looked up at me with teary eyes.

-/Tea Shop/-

We were sitting in his room once more, on his bed with the book between us. He stared at the drawing of me as a Phoenix and frowned. "I still don't know where your story could possibly be."

"Well there was a movie about it made by Disney of course but they got the character's all wrong."

"What do you mean?"

"Well for one, they totally cut out my best friend-"

"You have a best friend?!"

"Yeah, Felix is his name. Two, they totally make my love fall for this other girl who has these brothers and I don't even _know _who they are-"

"Wait, wait, wait, you have a love? Like a one _True Love_?"

"Sort of."

"Sort of!? I thought Phoenixes mate for life and only get _one_ Mate."

"They do…and I mean he is my True Love…but we just haven't actually fallen _in _love. We were close, but it didn't happen."

"But you're Mates! How did it not happen?!"

"Henry," I started, my voice becoming soft. "When I became a Phoenix-and yes I _became_ a Phoenix, I was cursed. Now this Curse, I've realized and learned, destroys any chance of happiness and love for me by either ruining the relationship or just killing the other person."

"And when you say love…"

"I mean family and Mates, and sometimes a bit with friends."

"So you and this guy almost fell in love but your Curse ruined it?" he asked, trying to get the facts correct.

"Yes and so I'm stuck here with this knowledge that he's my Mate but unable to actually call him my Mate because it hasn't legitimately happened."

"Who _is_ this guy?"

"If you meet him, it won't be a happy occasion."

"What? Why?"

"Henry, come down," a voice called from down below. Henry and I looked at each other before deciding to go. We found Regina and David in the main room, surely there to duel out Henry's residency. He stopped almost at the bottom of the staircase but didn't go any further. I flew to David, transforming back into a human. Regina went up the stairs to tell him, "Henry, you're gonna go home with David." The majority of us was shocked to say the least, Henry especially, asking if it was real,

"Really?"

"Really," she nodded, "I shouldn't have brought you here. I was…I don't know how to love very well. I wasn't capable of it for a very long time. But I now-I remember…That if you hold on to someone too hard, that doesn't make them love you. I'm sorry I lied to you, that I made you feel like I didn't know who you are. But I want you to be here because you want to be here, not because I forced you…and not because of magic. I _want_ to redeem myself. Go get you things." He nodded and ran back up to his room.

"Then prove it." David told her.

"How?" the woman asked.

"Answer one question. Does it exist?"

"What?"

"The Enchanted Forest, our land-does it still exist?" I rolled my eyes at Charming's antics, that _was not_ the way to redeem herself in Henry's eyes.

"Yes," Regina answered, coming closer. "But I have no idea how to get back there. I can see I just launched you on a heroic quest."

"You did," I muttered.

"Just also make sure you take care of my son,"

"That I can do."

"As can I," I agreed and she smiled in thanks, albeit with an odd look in her eyes. We all nodded in agreeance and Henry soon came back down, walking out with Charming. Regina watched and I turned to her. "Show him that you love him and that you're trying," I advised and she nodded before I turned away and leapt up, changing back and flying back to the Tea Shop.

-/Tea Shop/-

I had already said goodbye to Sebastian and promised I'd be safe, so I made my way to Granny's to tell David and Henry my plans. They were eating their meal peacefully as I entered, a little bag of essentials on my persons as I continued forth, plopping down in the spot next to them. Red looked up and I waved her off before she could ask if I wanted something. "I'm going," I announced.

The two looked at me, "What?"

"I'm going to the Enchanted Forest, going to see if they're there and if I can help."

"Will you tell us if they're okay?"

"Yeah, but I must warn you the time between each realm is always a bit different so it may not be as fast as you think."

"I don't care just tell my mom I love her," Henry told me, getting up from his seat and pulling me in for a hug, "Be safe, I'll miss you." I smiled stroking his hair before pushing him away and looking deeply into his eyes, leaning in close.

"I'll be back before I know it. I'll miss you too," I told him before kissing his cheek. Waving away as I walked out of the diner, I decided not to allow Henry to see the fear and worry tingling across my mind.

A ghostly hand slipped into mine and I looked up at the foggy image. "Ready to go?" he asked and I nodded before jumping in the air and flying away, his hand never leaving my own.

-/Tea Shop/-

_**HENRY'S POV**_

I watched as Kendra walked out of the store, never looking back, and I hoped that she would help my mom and grandma. I also wanted her to come back unscathed, Kendra being one of the most _out of place_ person in StoryBrooke, which is saying something, causing interest and curiosity to grow.

Suddenly a dark shadow figure began to materialize next to her and I began to worry. Who was that? What is that? And…why were they holding Kendra's _hand_? She seemed happy though, smiling at the figure before leaping into the air.

But I was curious and worried.

Something about that figure didn't sit right with me.


	12. Skipping Episodes Cuz of Kendra Travels

**Chapter Twelve: The Priestess's Cup**

My wings were open and sore but I kept on going. It had been days of flying since I had left and I was dawning the Enchanted Forest. It would take a while for my journeys between the Enchanted Forest and the Land Without Magic to shorten until it would only take just an hour, but that was not today. It was always like this, prolonging the journey made it longer and the more and more times you took it, the less time it would be. I was surprised it hadn't taken me a year to get to the Enchanted Forest like it had to the Land without Magic the first time, but I was glad I was returning.

If ever returned to Neverland I don't know how long that would be.

I swept over the long expanses of deserted land eventually spotted them, my avian eyesight at its clearest. Swiftly, I tucked my wings into my body and plummeted to the ground before extending them and landing with a gracious bow that was probably very exaggerated but much needed as I changed back into my human form. Only to find myself back in my priestess clothing.

It was quite common for us to have very flowy and beautiful cloths on our bodies as Phoenixes but after spending time in the LWM (Land Without Magic) I began to realize how ridiculous we looked at times. I stared at the long golden skirt with slits to present my legs, the highly cropped top with no sleeves that was golden as well, and my bronze heels. Feather earrings dangled from my ears, bracelets on my wrists, and the bicep strip was on my left arm; all were golden. I was most surely wearing my khol and my tattoos lay bare to the world.

And that's when I looked at my guests.

Emma and Snow gaped at me and I shrugged, a warrior woman bowed to the ground in respect, and another princess in a long white shawl covering her lilac dress stood awkwardly, and my eyes narrowed in on the familiar man, "Kendra? My god you look…beautiful!"

"Killian," I smirked and warned and he rolled his eyes, bowing to me in mocking. I looked down at the warrior and I lifted her chin to me. "Rise," I told her and she nodded, her brown eyes wide in awe.

"Priestess, it is an honor," she bowed again and I smiled finally getting the respect I deserved. Damn straight I'm an all powerful Phoenix. People didn't really bow to us anymore. Pity.

"Kendra, my name is Kendra, and your name child?"

"Child?" Emma scoffed, looking at my age and clothes, "What are you wearing and what are you _doing_?"

Snowier elbowed her, "Shh!"

"Hua Mulan, it is an honor Fenghuang," Mulan stared at me some more and I patted her shoulder, smiling at her.

"The honor is mine, I've heard many stories of you." She blushed, humbled, and I looked back at Emma and Snow, walking towards them. Summoning magic, my magic turned my clothes into more common ones with each step, "Well, Emma, some people hold respect for my kind."

"Why? She acted like you were a god."

"We are," I said sharply and Snow tensed at my voice, "Practically immortal, nothing can touch us, and they _are_ the higher species."

"And you?"

"I'm the mutt of the family," I said before clapping my hands, "So what are we doing? And why is my dear friend Killian here?!"

"Hook," he corrected but I smiled and patted his cheek; he rolled his eyes.

"Trying to figure out who goes up." I looked up at the beanstalk.

-/Tea Shop/-

"All due respect, I'm the best-equipped to go," Mulan declared looking at the three other girls. I stood next to Hook a while away, inspecting the beanstalk and his hook with interest.

"Nice tattoos." A pause and then, "How many wars have you been through?"

"Thanks, I've really come attached to inking all over my body."

"My share," Snow yelled.

"Yes, the one on your stomach I particularly like," he leered, looking pointedly at my chest. I laughed and pulled up the turquoise tank to reveal the Isis goddess symbol, wings extended widely.

"It should be me." Aurora, I came to know, declared.

"I do too," I told him with a mock wink.

"You? You haven't fought in a battle!"

"So, tell me what happened," he whispered and I went rigid, the cold seeping in my warm body at his whisper.

"This is about us getting home to _our_ loved ones," Snow said. "Why would you-"

"Hook," I warned or whispered or pleaded I didn't know but his eyes bore into mine.

"Because I have no loved ones," Aurora announced with all the angst all of the teenagers in existence possessed. "If I fail, you can still go on."

"Tell me what happened, Kendra," his voice gone cool as well. "One day it was all happiness and rainbows and annoying mischief and the next it was darker, sadder; the wails grew louder in the night, Kendra, and you were _gone_. What happened Kendra? What did you do?"

"It's me. I'm going, and I'm not gonna fail," Emma interrupted.

"Killian," I whispered, a gasoline tear falling down my face.

"You're new here."

"Kendra, what happened?" he pressed, whipping my tear with his thumb.

"It's about getting back to Henry. I don't care what I have to face."

"Not…" I gasped. Why was it that just one question could wreck me? "Not today."

"You're not gonna argue with me?" Emma asked Snow.

"Why the bloody hell not?" he asked, confusion playing across his face.

"Would it do any good?" Snow rebuttled.

"Because I'm not ready yet."

"No," Emma breathed, "Anything in that bags that's gonna help me with a giant?"

"It's been at least twenty eight years-more than that, at _least_ a century for me," Killian looked over at the girls.

"A hook," Mulan muttered peering back at him.

"Hey," he objected before turning to me, "Kendra how long has it been for you?"

"Come with me," Mulan told Emma. I looked at Hook, my lip trembling.

"I don't know…a few centuries…at least two incarnations." He looked away, as if he was disgusted. I looked away as well, furiously wiping at my eyes.

"Ladies," he called as if all was well, "In this world, we are slaves to time. And ours is running out. In others words, ticktock." Emma walked towards him and she presented his wrist, "I was hoping it'd be you."

"Just get on with it."

"Put your hand right here. That's a good girl," he said as she followed his instructions, "This will allow you to climb. There are other dangers. Thankfully, you've got me to protect you." He then present his disabled arm and Emma gave him a look. He returned it, "I can't climb one-handed, can I?" They all looked unsettled except for me as Emma reached in the bag and pulled out his hook.

"Don't think I'm taking my eyes off you for a second," Emma warned, handing it over.

"I would," he clicked it on, "despair if you did."

"Let's go," the Savior muttered.

They approached the beanstalk and began climbing.

-/Tea Shop/-

Mulan grabbed a stick and drew some lines in the dirt, Aurora approached her, "What is that?"

"Keeps the time," the brunet told her.

"You have somewhere to be?" Snow asked.

"We can mark watches, take turns sleeping. We'll most likely have to walk through the night again, so we should rest while we can."

"I'll take first shift," Snow volunteered.

"I'll stay up with you," Aurora added.

"Okay," Mulan decided walking over to a log.

"When's the last time you slept?" Snow asked.

"I don't really sleep now," Aurora replied, looking flustered, "Not after what I've been through."

"Sleeping Curse," the woman deduced.

"The one time I did sleep, I had horrible nightmares."

"It's a side effect," the sympathetic woman explained, "Same thing happened to me…"

I dwindled away after that, walking slowly around the camp. I looked at the horizon, watching the sun move.

I felt his presence and I smiled.

"Reuniting with old friends," a snide voice muttered viciously and I knew that _I _hadn't brought him here.

"Oh, yeah, Killian."

"Killian is it?" he crowed before snarling, "I always knew you were a whore-is that what you called him when you were together?"

I turned sharply to the shadow and pushed it up the beanstalk, snapping, "You listen here Shadow," I spat, "I loved you-no I _love_ you and if you ever thought I was ever with Hook then you must have never known me."

"It didn't stop you from kissing Felix."

"Ha. Lu. Cin. At. Ion," I sounded out, "A hallucination just like what you are right now. I thought Felix was you and if you had let. Me. _Explain_! Then we wouldn't be like this!" I shouted and he disappeared just as Snow reappeared.

"You okay? I heard shouting."

"It's just…you know, Shadow," I explained uncomfortably.

"You mentioned that once or twice, you alright though?"

"Fine," I told her with a smile and I returned to the group, deciding to lay down and sleep.

-/Tea Shop/-

"_Boys!" Peter called as we made our way to their camp and I was a fluttering mess of nerve, excited to finally meet the Lost Boys and Felix. I'd heard a lot about them after the few visits Peter and I've had, a friendship solidified by a weak strand that was growing and growing. _

"_Peter," I whispered turning my head to his ear, "What if they don't like me?"_

_He turned to me and raised his eyebrow before bursting into laughter, "Don't be such a __**girl**__, Kendra."_

_I stuck my tongue out at him as we entered the clearing. All of the Lost Boys sat around the fire with mild interest before looking up when we came in. "Boys, this is Kendra. Kendra, these are the Lost Boys," he puffed his chest out in pride and I rolled my eyes. No one moved until one of the younger boys crawled over to me with large eyes, looking back and forth between Peter and I._

"_**This**__ is Kendra? She's much prettier than you described her!" he exclaimed before bringing his hands up to touch my feathers. I smiled and jumped down from Pan's shoulder to nuzzle the boy's hand._

"_Why thank you," he squealed in surprise at the sound of my voice and some of the others chuckled. When the boy decided he had thoroughly examined my feathers, he moved away and clung to Peter's leg. Pan rolled his eyes but picked up the boy, letting him climb on his back. The sight of Peter with a child was…interesting to see. I looked around the boys, "So which one of you is Felix?"_

_All was silent until one of the tallest teens lifted his head. I smiled as his grey eyes and blonde hair was revealed. He looked awkward but adorable. I flew up into the air and landed right in front of him, invading his personal space when I leaned forward eagerly. "It's nice to meet you-do you want to go the cliffs with me? I heard the sunset there was beautiful!"_

_The boy looked uncomfortable and nodded hesitantly but when he did nod, I grabbed his hand, and pulled him up, dragging the boy away. Peter was confused but I just smirked and continued on my path with the stronger boy barely able to keep up. "Wait a minute!" Peter exclaimed once we passed the trees._

"_Bye, Peter!" I called, "I'll see you later, I won't break your second in command!" _

_I could practically hear the look of horror and the redness blooming on his face._

-/Tea Shop/-

I was dead to the world, fast asleep on one of the logs.

That was until Mulan had the bright idea to swing her (awesome can I just say that because it is)sword at the beanstalk.

I awoke to the pulse that rang out and Snow yelling, "No!" I sat up, groggily wiped my eyes, and wasn't even that much bothered by their actions.

"No! Stop!" Aurora called as Snow barreled Mulan to the ground where they began to brawl. "Stop! Stop!"

"I hate my life," I muttered, getting up and stretching my limbs.

"This was your daughter's wish!" Mulan told her before Snow rolled them over.

"I don't care what you say! You do _not_ put my daughter in danger!"

"Stop!" Emma yelled, crashing to the ground. I finally began to wipe down my clothes of any dirt.

"Emma," Snow called, getting off of Mulan, running to her daughter. "Oh. You okay?"

"Two earthquakes and a jump from a beanstalk. I think my brain's still rattling around a little."

"I did what she ordered, nothing more than that. Did you get it?"

I yawned and stretched some more. Waking up was a routine guys, it took awhile.

"Yep," Emma presented it to us.

"Where's Hook?" I asked, not noticing the pirate anywhere.

"He's detained. Let's go. Get your stuff," Emma ordered. "We got ten hours before he follows us." Mulan and Aurora began to gather their stuff.

"What? How?"

"What you do to him?" I asked, hoping my friend from long ago was alright.

"I got a friend looking after him till then," was all Emma said. I nodded and walked towards Mulan and Aurora.

I hoped he was okay.


	13. Children of the Sun and Moon Play

**Chapter Thirteen: Sebastian Tells A Story**

Kendra had been gone for at least a week and the apartment and the shop…it was uncomfortable being there alone. She would just smile and laugh if she heard me think this way, but I truly felt like a guest in our own apartment without her smile. Red helped.

Red helped _a lot_.

She kept my mind off of it a lot…with the most interesting and complex techniques that I was still getting used to and I was beginning to realize that there are many uses for her mouth and they were all quite pleasant. I could practically hear Kendra laughing whenever Red did something that made me blush and it reminded me completely of how inexperienced I was with relationships.

Like now for instance. Everyone was at the diner and making toasts-"To the dwarfs!" on their findings in the mines. I sat off to the side and watched Ruby as she did her clean up duties and I had to restrain myself from reaching out to hold her hand or worse, kiss her where everyone could see. How mortifying to be caught in such a scandalous position-I was already blushing.

And then I had to watch some guy flirt with _my_ Mate and I wasn't sure whether or not I was allowed to rip his throat out like all my instincts were telling me to.

Of course the logical side of my head told me-which I thankfully followed-to wait it out and let Red be her own individual person. She did not need a Prince Charming. I looked over at David and narrowed my eyes…did she need a Prince Charming-

No. No Red was _my_ Mate, _I_ am her perfect match, her Mate. It is me and I cannot let jealousy cloud my mind.

We were still new to this, our bond still forming, and emotions were high. The full moon was tonight so Red would be anxious but I would protect her, watch over her, _be_ there for her.

A girl named Belle rescued my Mate and they talked for a moment before Red came over to me. I opened my arms, letting her in, and she clung to me, inhaling my scent. "It's going to be okay," I told her, "I'll be with you every step of the way."

She pulled back, worry clear in her eyes, "What if I hurt you?"

"Then it is well deserved," I joked but she frowned. I rubbed her arms.

"That's not funny Sebastian."

"Hey," I cooed, bringing her into another hug, "It's going to be alright I promise."

She nodded.

-/Tea Shop/-

Kendra told me a story when we were younger. It was about how she had met Snow and Red. I thought about it while I packed some things for the long night.

-/Tea Shop/-

_Snow and Red were running in the forest, running from bad people out to hurt them. "Oh, I think we lost them."_

"_Snow, wait. Wait!" Red had yelled. And then, out of nowhere a black guard came out, flinging out his blade._

"_You can't run from the Queen, Snow White!" Kendra who had been traveling through the forest in search for some herbs to bring back to the Lost Boys was coincidentally nearby and attacked the guard with the help of Snow White and Red, incapacitating him. _

"_Come on," Red said, running off deeper into the woods. Kendra trailed behind, trying to dim her fiery feathers to the best of her ability. _

"_There are more of them!" my sister had called. She introduced herself as she ran along with them, "I'm Kendra! Do you do this often?"_

"_I'm Red!" my werewolf called back as she ran up the hill. Snow White stopped when she spotted a WANTED poster. Kendra stopped with her._

"_I'm assuming you're Snow White," the Phoenix inquired. The princess nodded before angrily grabbing the paper and crumpling it up. And then they ran once more. Kendra's feathers became as dark as dying embers when they finally stopped, a man shouting out,_

"_Right this way!"_

_As the guards passed, they were all still, Kendra's glowing eyes, I remember her saying, were wide and fearful with a hint of mischief. She was happier back then. "It's okay," Red Riding Hood told them. "They're gone."_

_They sat up and Snow White pulled out the paper, opening it up, "She's never going to stop, is she?"_

"_Who's she?" Kendra had asked and then they remembered the stranger, backing away from her._

"_Who are you?" they retorted and Kendra extended a wing, her feather heating up again._

"_Kendra, I already said that and you?"_

"_Snow White and this is Red."_

"_What are you?" Red had asked out of curiosity, sniffing the air. Kendra did as well and smelt the werewolf._

"_That's a lot coming from you," she mumbled before relaxing and smiling once more, "I'm a Phoenix."_

"_A Phoenix?" Snow White asked, recalling something from her past, "I think I've heard of your kind before. My mother used to tell stories."_

"_Yes well we're a hard to find species," she told them before muttering, "Trust me, I know." Kendra had of course not have met us yet due to her curse separating us and was still in fact living happily with the Lost Boys and Pan. It would be a few more reincarnations before Kendra would be forced to leave them. The girls all seemed to have become friends or at least built a truce and a bond between them._

"_My hood-" Red said abruptly, looking down at her magical red cape "it's torn." Snow White reached forward to inspect as did Kendra, glowing in interest, but Red scrambled away, "You have to go. You have to get away from me." _

"_I'm not leaving you."_

"_There's a Full Moon tonight. Wolfstime is beginning," Red exclaimed. "This hood is the only thing that can protect me from turning."_

"_It's just a tear Red, it'll be alright," Kendra comforted._

"_Maybe it'll still work," Snow White supplied and my sister nodded._

"_What if it doesn't? You saw what I did to Peter-"_

"_-Who's Peter?-" Kendra asked._

"_-This thing-the Wolf-when it takes over me, I can't control it. Please, Snow and you too Kendra, find shelter. I'll go further into the woods and find a place to hide. For your own sakes, we have to split up."_

_It took Snow White a while to concede, "All right. Just for tonight. Let's meet up in the morning by the stream, and then we'll find a safe place for all of us," nodding at Kendra who smiled in thanks. "Maybe a nice cabin in the woods."_

"_Why are you doing this?" Red had asked. _

"_Doing what?" Kendra and Snow were both confused._

"_Being so…kind to me. You saw what I did as a wolf," Kendra was still confused, "What I am."_

"_I know that's not what you really are."_

"_I've known you for five minutes and I already know that you are a nice person," Kendra told my Mate._

"_We're in this together, Red." They all nodded at each other and Red pulled on her cloak and began to run. Kendra and Snow White looked to each other in worry and went on their own way. _

_Kendra told me she had decided to stay just to make sure that they were alright._

_That was one of the best decisions she had ever made in my opinion._

-/Tea Shop/-

Red was already transformed when I got there and Granny locked the door behind me, shutting us inside the diner. I made my way out to the back room and laid down some blankets and pillows. Red whined from behind the door. "I'm here, I'm here," I told her, trying to sooth her with my words. I transformed back into my Phoenix form and snuggled into the burrow I made before beginning to tell Red a story, hoping she'd be soothed by my voice.

-/Tea Shop/-

Red had gotten out.

The door was flung open.

She was growling-she couldn't control herself.

The swipe of her paw was all I remember before-

Darkness.

-/Tea Shop/-

_Whilst Red, Snow White, and Kendra were split up. Red got herself in trouble when she shucked off her cloak for water and a man named Quinn stole it. He told her he was a werewolf just like her and took her back to his den._

_Red found her dead mother there._

-/Tea Shop/-

I woke up hours later in a hospital bed back in my human form. I gingerly touched my cheek and felt the gash already closing on its own. There'd be a real scar there, the first to scathe my body because only Mate's could really, truly touch us.

I was actually somewhat relieved; all the wolf wanted was to mark me I believe.

-/Tea Shop/-

_With her mother's and pack's help, Red learned to control her wolf, to be free. _

-/Tea Shop/-

I was released from the hospital a few hours later and followed my instincts, followed the pull that tethered me to her. Finding Red, Granny, Belle, and David all at the library. The bell sounded when I opened the door and everyone looked up, except for Red who was securing the chains. "These should work-oh my god Sebastian," she cried, looking at me face, I smiled, reached forward and pulled her into a kiss and then a hug.

"It's alright, it's alright," I soothed, rubbing her back. She trembled in my arms.

"Thanks for letting her hide here," David told Belle as they walked through the shelves, "The Sheriff's Station isn't safe."

"Of course. It's, uh, it's not every day you find out your friend's-"

"A monster."

"No," I hushed angrily. Belle looked at me in curiosity.

"Hunted," the librarian replied, "I was going to say 'Hunted.'"

"The crowd's six blocks from here," Granny announced. I kissed Red's neck softly and she relaxed instantly in my arms.

"You-you have wolf hearing, too?"

"It's not all it's cracked up to be, especially when you run a hotel and you can still hear those two," Granny pointed to us and I went rigid, blushing tomato red, and Red gaping at her grandmother with her own blush.

David decided to spare us, "The only way we're gonna get the mob to stand down is if we prove Ruby had nothing to do with Billy's death."

"What?" I looked between them all, "What happened?"

"Billy's dead, I killed him," Red whispered brokenly. I shook my head, rubbing her arms.

"I'm gonna need your help," David said, having an idea, pointing at Granny. "If the mob comes this way, call us, come on." Granny and David left.

I kissed Red on the lips once more, harshly, with no mercy, to tell her everything. To tell her she was not a monster.

-/Tea Shop/-

_Kendra and Snow White were alone in the woods for a few days, trying to find Red. They bonded easily and Kendra, surprisingly, was at ease with answering any and all of Snow's questions, with only few of her own._

_That surprised Snow White but Kendra had told me that Snow White needed to trust her because that's the only way to help her and to do that, she had to lay herself bare. It still surprised me today all the little things that made up my sister._

_Eventually they found Red but at the cost of leading the Queen's men to their den. All of the guards had died at the viscous hands of those wolves._

_One of the wolves died and their leader was glaring harshly at Snow White._

-/Tea Shop/-

"So you and Ruby," Belle smirked, leaning over the desk to look at me.

"Yes?" I shifted, unsure of what to do. Is this what 'meeting the parents' was like?

"You're together?"

"Yes," I told her, sitting up straight.

"And you're…?"

"Sebastian," I introduced.

"No I meant back in our land."

"Oh, I'm a Phoenix."

"A Phoenix!" Belle exclaimed, her eyes growing bright, "I've only heard _legends_ wow! And, and your sister-Kendra was it? She's one too?"

"Yes, but she isn't like us."

Ruby entered the room, "You need to leave. Sebastian, I will not hurt you again. The moon's gonna be up soon."

"But will the chains hold?" Belle asked, following her. I did as well.

"Hopefully." Something was off in her voice.

"Then I'm staying. Think of it as Girl's Night."

"And you can't make me go," I told her even though I knew I was wrong. She _could_ make me go, but Red knew that it would be wrong-she had to have known that. "So think of it as Mate's and Friend's Night."

"What's wrong?"

"I know David wants to believe the best, but I've killed before, and I'll do it again," she picked up the chains. "Everyone in this town is right to be afraid of me."

"Okay, well, I'm not."

"And it's really hard to me make me."

"You _should_ be scared."

"No matter what you might've done in your past, David sees the good in you, Sebastian sees the good in you, and…and that tells me one thing."

"What?"

"That it's in there," Belle told her. I stared at Ruby, my eyes surely golden and holding all the love I had for her within them. "So if we can all see it, why can't you?"

"You really think so?"

"Trust me. I'm sort of an expert when it comes to rehabilitation."

"Maybe," her lips quivered and I stepped closer, "Maybe you're right." Red stepped forward and placed the chains on our wrists. I looked at her in betrayal, horror whitening my face at her words, "But the town's right, too. I _am_ a monster, and that's why I need to make sure I don't ever hurt anyone again."

"No. No. Wh-what are you doing?" Belle asked.

"I can't let you stop me. The mobs wants a wolf. I'm gonna give them one. I need to pay for all I've done."

"Red," I whined, panic in my voice, I was hyperventilating. I couldn't breathe.

"They'll kill you." Belle gasped.

"Isn't that what I've deserve?"

"Red!" I yelled, terrified. She took a step forward pulled me in for one of the filthiest kisses I've _ever_ had my entire life and ran, leaving me behind and in too small trousers. "Red!" I whined, clawing at my wrist.

-/Tea Shop/-

_Kendra told me that Red's mother decided that in revenge for Quinn's death, she decided to kill Snow White. Kendra was knocked aside as Snow was tied up. When Red's mother made her move to kill her, Red attacked and her mother landed on a spike._

_Snow White put the cloak back on Red to make her human once more. "I didn't mean to," Red cried, holding her mother. "I'm-I'm sorry, Mother."_

"_You chose her," the woman whispered. Snow and Kendra held on to each other. _

"_No," Red declared, "I chose me. I'm not a killer."_

-/Tea Shop/-

After the panic attack calmed down, logic settled in and I immediately melted the shackle off my wrist with a roar. Anger welled up in me. How could she just leave me? How could she just decide to get herself killed? What about me? What about Granny? Belle stared at me as I sprinted away, transforming into a Phoenix. "I'll get you later!" I roared back, taking flight and scavenging the town for her. I found David and Granny with the mob, Ruby hiding behind a dumpster. David had just finished his speech when I landed, transforming back into a human with each step and pushing my way through the crowd.

I got to the outside just as Ruby turned back into a human, looking up at Prince Charming with awe and appreciation. All I heard was, "You saved me." Before my world shattered.

She didn't trust me.

She didn't believe in our bond.

She didn't…she didn't…

Tears welled in my eyes as I turned around, leaping into the air and flying away, already back into the firebird. I let out wail that pierced the air as the tears filled with fire fell.

She didn't love me.

At least not enough to ask for my help.

-/Tea Shop/-

The rest of the story as Kendra told me was that they buried her mother and from that day forward, they were friends; I thought about as I lay curled up in my bed.

My room was a mess. When I entered it, I just…destroyed everything. Rage overtaking my pain until I was exhausted and collapsed on my bed, the sadness overriding everything. I could hardly breathe, my heart felt like it was breaking, it felt like I was dying and each second got worse. Each second I felt more and more depressed and my vision was darkening, turning hazy.

Was this what Kendra had felt all those years ago?

Was this what she feels all the time?

-/Tea Shop/-

_**KENDRA'S POV**_

"Yes," I whispered in the darkness. "Yes, Sebastian, this is what I feel." It had started a few hours ago, a huge spike of pain filling and extending to my every fibre. I was told, during my time in Paradise the first time, that when Phoenixes were overwhelmed by a single emotion that all of us feel it. That's how they found me at Regina's so long ago, by tracking down that beacon of pain that filled us all.

Usually we felt it when one of us died.

Tears fell down my face and I raced up to Snow, it wasn't dark yet but the sunset was on the horizon. I grasped her shoulder, and she looked at me in worry, "Are you okay? What's wrong Kendra?"

"Sebastian," I gasped, the others looked over at me, "I need to go back. Sebastian's dying-or at least he feels like he is and I need to go to him."

"Sure, sure, go," Snow agreed, somehow understanding my words through my tears. I nodded in thanks before leaping up into the sky and flying as fast as I could to the Land Without Magic.

-/Tea Shop/-

_**SEBASTIAN'S POV**_

I didn't even hear her come in, but I felt her weight dip into the bed. She slowly turned my body towards her and began to stroke my cheeks. My eyes were surely red and puffy as I groggily looked up at her. My Mate was confused and worried. "Sebastian," she whispered, pushing my hair back, "What happened?"

"Wh-what happened?" I croaked disbelievingly before turning my head away, "Where you not here these past few hours?"

"What's wrong?"

I glared at her. "What's wrong? What's wrong! Red you practically rejected the bond!"

"What?!"

"First you chain me up, then you let me have that panic attack after that _filthy _kiss, then I escaped, and later found you and _Prince Charming_ getting all close and all because some other guy was trying to hit on you and-"

"Sebastian!" she interrupted, holding my head in her hands. "Sebastian," she whispered, "I'm sorry, I really am…I didn't realize how much this affected you."

"Red," I yelled before quieting, "You have to realize that it isn't just you anymore-it's _us_. We're a _team_. I can't _do_ this without you. Red, I can't live without you. I literally cannot. Don't…don't do that again…please…don't break me," I whispered pitifully. Her lip trembled before she lifted my face and pressed her lips to mine.

"I won't-I'm trying not to, I love you, Adelphe, I love you so much…I'm sorry…I'm sorry," she murmured through kisses and I felt the breath come back into my lungs. I nodded when we broke apart, her forehead resting on mine. She peppered kisses across my face and then…lower…to my neck. "Adelphe."

I'm not ashamed to say I groaned.

"Filthy kiss, huh?" she muttered in my ear. She bit lightly at my skin.

"Oh god…Red!"


	14. Do You Guy's Remember Rufio? I Do

**Chapter Fourteen: Chamomile To Calm You Down**

It had taken me a few hours to get back to the LWM and I kept psyching myself out and that was proving to be a bad decision since it caused me to stop more than once to just _breathe_. He'd be alright, he'd be alright, I'd be there, and he'd be alright. So I breathed in and started flying again. The town seemed to be getting on, living in its own normalcy but the undertones of rot and death clung to the air with unheard mourners and prayers. Once I started looking for the signs I couldn't undo the constant reminders of the pain from my mind and it was choking me slowly.

I landed-more liked crashed-and ran the rest of the way to the shop. Heart pounding, gasping for air, and legs and muscles burning from the stretch and over exertion of hours and hours of constant movement, worry, and tingling forbearance. The shop was closed but I pulled the door aside and I ran across the shop and up the stairs. When I approached the door, a crash and cluttered movements reached my ears before a loud string of noises followed after. Grunts from two different voices filled my ears and I was worried for a second that something bad was happening to Sebastian and some unknown attacker. I quickly twisted the knob and barged in the room.

Only to find Sebastian and Red heavily groping and making out with each other on the kitchen counter.

"Oh my god!" I gasped and they broke apart quickly. Their eyes bore into mine in shock but they were still groping and pupils blown wide with lust. Gross.

"Kendra…wh-what are you-"

"What are you doing?!" I exclaimed, confused as hell as to why they were wrapped around each other like candle wicks; it was revolting. "He's supposed to be heartbroken!"

"Surprise," he tried weakly, wiggling jazz hands up to me, "I'm not."

"But that's the reason why I came!" I narrowed my eyes in on Red and took a few steps closer to her, poking the woman, "What did you do to my brother?" She smelled like Sebastian and _sex_-gross I didn't want to picture that.

"It was an accident I swear."

"What did you _do_ Red?" Sebastian growled in warning at my voice and I just rolled my eyes at him.

"She didn't realize she was rejecting the bond by accident-"

"She did _what_?" I yelled before turning to her once more, "Red, you can't just _do_ that-that fucking hurts, Red-"

"I know, I know, I didn't mean to, I apologized, I learned my mistake, we made up."

"Clearly," I muttered giving them a once over. Sebastian had a scar on his face-I wasn't even going to touch on that right now-and love bites littered their necks, clothes were rumpled, and their body language just _oozed_ 'We just had hours and hours of long and hot sex and my libidio is feeling great and we'd really appreciate it if you'd leave so we can practice every single position in Kama Sutra without your virgin-self interrupting our sexytimes.'

Their blush was evident on their face but….

Sebastian's smirk was bigger.

-/Tea Shop/-

I soon left after warning them if I heard them from down in the shop that I _would_ complain loudly, start banging on the walls, and start recording every noise I heard. It _looked_ like they understood what I was threatening but as soon as I got down in the shop I heard their own form of banging and giggling. I rolled my eyes, sighed, and proceeded to close the shop and head over to Granny's for a much needed meal.

As I sat at the counters I ordered a burger with fries. After I placed said order I rested my head on the surface below and groaned as my muscles relaxed. "Oh Sweet Lord Jesus I should have never flown so fast…god how long _was_ that trip?" I thought about it, "A few hours-I should not do that, that stuff hurts and wears you down."

I heard someone cough and I looked up to see some stranger giving me a weird look. I rolled my eyes before resting my head on my arms. "Here you go miss!" a man exclaimed with glee as he put down my order. He looked eighteen or nineteen years old and his eyes were light brown.

"Thanks," I murmured before taking a huge bite of the burger.

"Haven't seen you around before," he said, still standing here-why hadn't he left yet? I looked at his name tag, it read: Jack.

"Really?" I drawled, leaning back in my seat, "That's a shock, I literally have a shop just down the road."

"Really? Wow? How old are you? You don't look any older than sixteen!" I glared-I don't look sixteen!

"Eighteen," I bit out, "But I'm really much older than that."

"And how's that?"

"Magic," I answered sarcastically, waving my hands around. He tensed, his eyes narrowing as he leaned forward and whispered conspiringly,

"I wouldn't joke about that kind of stuff around here."

I huffed out a laugh, "And why's that?"

"The Dark One's just over there," he pointed behind me. I turned around and there he was…with a strange girl. I got confused and my face scrunched up. I turned back to the boy.

"So?"

"So!"

"Listen Jack," I leaned in, "It's not a big deal for me, thanks for the burger." I picked up my plate, trudged across the room and slid into the booth next to Rumple. I was surprisingly brave today. "Hi Rumple!"

He looked at me in shock as did the girl.

"Hi, I'm Kendra," I introduced, pulling out my hand for her to shake, "And you are?"

"What are you doing here?" he asked just as the girl replied with,

"I'm Belle."

"Great to meet you Belle and Rumple, I just stopped by for a visit."

"You're supposed to be in the _Enchanted Forest_, why are you here?"

"Thought my kin was in trouble, false alarm-ish, it's all better now, and it's great to meet you Belle."

"No, the pleasure's all mine, I've heard so many legends and stories about you-is it true that you knew Peter Pan-"

Rumple almost shattered his cup and turned to me quickly, "What?" he snarled and I quickly lied.

"Just a myth ha ha, no I've never been to Neverland."

"But one of the stories mentions that you two are Mates-that your souls are entwined and practically every story with him mentions a bird of fire and I just thought-"

"They're mistaken," I answered quickly, "I've never met Peter Pan, just heard stories."

Granny came over with their own orders and Belle smiled, "They smell delicious, Granny."

"They are delicious. Didn't take any dark magic either. Hey Kendra."

"Hi," I awkwardly replied, feeling the tension in the air suddenly.

"Oh, and, uh, I charge extra for the pickles," the woman added leaning onto the table.

"Mm-hmm," the man hummed before Granny walked away, "I have a complicated relationship with her, as I do with most people."

"Well, it, uh, it did take me a little time to get to know you. They will."

"Awww, is our Rumple a softy on the inside?"I cooed and the man gave me a glare.

"What is wrong with you today?"

"I don't know," I groaned, resting my head to the booth, "That flight drained me so much I've been acting like a lunatic."

"You are a lunatic," he muttered and I thwacked his arm and Belle giggled. He reached over for the ketchup, "You know, you should try it with ketchup. Condiments are this world's most powerful magic." Belle looked interested and the door closed harshly.

"Gold," Regina's powerful voice rang out, "...and Kendra…what are you doing here-you know what later. We need to talk."

"Do we?"

"Folks, I think I may need to close early," Granny called out, "Uh, everybody out."

"No. It's okay. We're civil," Regina told her.

"Thank god," I muttered and Belle stared at me in shock.

"Yeah, for now. Belle, you remember the woman who locked you up for twenty eight years."

"Oh really?" I asked interested, leaning forward, "Did you have any fun?"

She looked shocked at my question, "Uh, I should probably just get-"

"No. No, please stay where you are. Whatever she has to say won't be a secret from you. Whatever she wants, she won't get."

I made a disbelieving sound, already knowing what she was here for.

"I'm actually coming about the one thing that might unite us."

"And what on earth can that be?"

"Cora," I told him.

"She's coming from our land. I need your help to stop her."

"But she was dead. You told me you saw the body."

"Apparently, you taught her well."

"She's isn't, she's coming this way," I added.

"I don't think I need to remind you how most unpleasant that would be for both of us."

"For you," he corrected and I scoffed. "I can handle Cora."

"That's not how she tells the story."

"I won in the end."

"Maybe. But there's a big difference this time," Regina leaned down, "This time you have someone you care about."

"Oh congratulations," I smiled at the girl, "you have officially thawed Rumple's heart."

"This time you have a weakness," Regina continued, ignoring me as per usual.

"I'm-I'm sorry. Who-who is this woman?"

"Someone you'll never met," Rumple reassured the woman across from us. "So you say she's coming. Where is she now?"

"Let's think about this."

"With _them_," Regina clarified.

-/Tea Shop/-

We made our to Rumple's pawn shop. "So what was it like over there."

"Oh you know stuff…don't really know what you're looking for."

"Oh…" When I entered through the doors, I immediately spotted Charming and he rushed over to me, enveloping me in a hug.

"Kendra!" he let me go, "What are you doing here? I thought you were-"

"KENDRA!" a young voice shouted out and I grinned, turning around just in time for Henry to plow into my body. "Kendra, Kendra-I've missed you so much!"

I was shocked, "Yeah? Really?"

"Yeah! I couldn't find your story _anywhere_!"

"Yes, Miss Jones, please tell us," Mr. Gold's eyes stared at me with a predatory interest, "What exactly _is_ your story?"

"Uh…another time perhaps, hey kid, why don't we go settle in-you need to go talk to Aurora!"

"Okay," he conceded after a moment, heading to the bed, laying down. Regina came over with a blanket.

"I brought your blanket from your bedroom back home," she told him, placing it over him.

"Thanks. So Cora-she's pretty powerful?"

"Yes, but, uh, not as powerful as I am."

"Or me," I added.

"Debatable," Regina scoffed as Rumple's reply.

"Actually, no, it's not."

Charming ignored them and sat on the bed with Henry, "You sure you're okay with this, kid?"

"Cause you can back out."

"I was born to do this," Henry replied determinedly, "I'm done reading about heroes. I wanna be one."

"You already are. And besides," I told him, "it's not what it's cracked up to be."

"Yes," Charming agreed, "and sometimes being one is knowing when not to run into the fire."

"I'll be okay."

"Look, whatever he faces in there will be far less dangerous than what he'll face if we fail."

"I can do this."

"No one said you couldn't," I whispered, pushing his hair aside.

Charming sighed before getting up. "Get on with it. Fast."

"All right, Henry," Rumple said, approaching. "Just relax. And soon, you're gonna drift off." I transformed back into my bird form and snuggled up to his sides, getting drowsy as well.

"What do I tell them?"

"Just listen to my bedtime story, and all will be clear." Henry closed his eyes. "Once upon a time, Snow White and Prince Charming needed to stun a very powerful magician long enough to lock him up in a dark dungeon."

"That was you. They used Cinderella to trap you with a magic quill."

"Yes, indeed, a quill. And yet, it wasn't the quill itself, but the _ink_ that captured the Dark One, harvested from the rarest species of squid from the bottom of a bottomless ocean-impossible to find unless you're a mermaid…or me. I happen to have a private supply. In my jail cell that is where they will find it."

My eyes drifted shut.

-/Tea Shop/-

"_Kendwa, Kendwa, Kendwa!" a young voice squealed and I turned around just in time for Rufio to plough into me, squeezing my body and snuggling into my warmth. I wrapped my wings around him._

"_Hi Rufio," I murmured, stroking his black hair. The younger boy lifted his face and grinned with his front two teeth missing._

"_Kendwra, Kendwa, I didn't have any nightmares wlast niwght-I had aw __**dwream**__!"_

"_Oh? Does that happen often?"_

"_No bwut Kendwa! You were in it!"_

"_Was I? What was this dream about?"_

"_It was all of wus in de fewture and we were all hwappy and playing games and them pirwates were the butt of all our pwranks and you were our mummy and Pan our daddy and we were wall hiappy and yweah!" My heart fluttered at the sound of me being their mom and…Peter as their dad-which was ridiculous, completely, utterly…ridiculous-we could never ever get together or something like that._

"_That's sounds lovely Rufio," I whispered and he snuggled deeper, inhaling my feathers._

"_You smell like daddy."_

"_Do I?"_

"_He smells like you-it's weird."_

_I chuckled and in the dark I could almost see Felix's eyes watching us, glowing in the darkness._

"_Kendraw?"_

"_Yes, Rufio?"_

"_Will my dwream come twue? Mwost dweams in Neverland come twue."_

_He was right-but they only came true to some degree._

"_Maybe Rufio. One day perhaps."_

"_Yay, I wuve you so mwuch mummy, you're so warm." I tightened my arms around his body._

"_Thanks Rufio, I love you as well."_

_I felt him smile._

-/Tea Shop/-

The jerk of Henry's body woke me up, "Henry, are you alright?"

"Did you see her? Did you tell her?"

"No. I-I didn't get the chance. Something-something happened. She-she got sucked out of there." Henry tried to sit up but gasped in agony.

"Henry?" the concerned mother asked, reaching for his arm.

"Some-something's wrong."

His arm was revealed…to show large burns etched to his skin. "Henry."

-/Tea Shop/-

"I'm going back, I'll come back as soon as possible."

"But…Kendr-"

"It's okay Henry, I'll be fine, you stay safe, and I'll be back as soon as possible," I kissed his forehead before standing up. As I walked out again, I called back, "I'll tell them where to look!"


	15. Felix, Soraya, and Peters Beautiful Body

**Chapter Fifteen: Need Some Caffeinated Tea ASAP**

I landed in the EF a few hours later and I was _exhusted_ these past few days of flying back and forth and back again were just draining and really bad for my health. My instincts-which were really only good for finding people-told me that Snow, Emma, Mulan, and Aurora were already on their way to the jail cell so I just made it my mission to beat them there. I was softly snoozing when they came in-a state of limbo. "Huh. Rumplestiltskin's cell," Snow said, lighting the torches along the wall. My eyes cracked open miserably.

"Hi-" yawn, "-guys."

"Kendra! There you are, are you okay what happened?"

"Well I was supposed to be the one to tell you where the ink is but I guess you already found that infor-" yawn, "-mation."

"You look tired," Emma said, concern in her eyes.

"_Exhausted_. I've been flying these past few days almost non stop with little sleep."

"Maybe you should take a nap," Snow, ever the concerned mother comforted and I nodded, yawning,

"Thanks." Before promptly passing out.

-/Tea Shop/-

"_Let's make a deal," Peter announced one day and I looked up from inspecting my nails._

"_A deal? It sounds stupid already."_

"_It's not, it's one of the most important deals of all time."_

"_Is it now? And what, may I ask, does this deal pertain to?"_

"_I'm an attractive young lad-"_

"_Peter!" I squawked, "If that is how you start it then I'm just going to laugh!"_

"_Don't laugh! Anyway, I know that it is quite hard to resist my attractive features, but I don't want you to become some stuttering mess each time I talk to you. You are my friend after all."_

"_Peter," I asked, "at what age did your head get too big? Was it your ego that destroyed your ability to appear smart at all?"_

"_What?"_

"_You're an idiot Peter Pan and I'm not attracted to you," I sniffed pompously, looking away from him._

"_What! I do not believe this!" _

"_And why not?" I narrowed my eyes at him._

"_Because I mean, look at me! I'm beautiful!"_

"_Whatever you say."_

_He narrowed his eyes at me before reaching for his shirt and taking it off, presenting his now naked chest. "Look at this!" I rolled my eyes before taking a quick look and chuckling._

"_I've seen better."_

"_What!?" his voice held indignation before he narrowed his eyes again and pointing his finger at me in accusation, "No you haven't!"_

"_Yes, Ihave, my childhood love Romulus was __**fabulous**__."_

"_No! He was not!-I don't believe you."_

"_Believe it," I chuckled, dropping from the branch and inspecting the teenager's body. It was nice…but not my type. "He was all lean but still built and had these hands…"_

"_I'm __**lean**__! And I'm __**built**__!"_

"_Of course you are," I patted his cheek and he swatted me away._

"_I'm attractive and I can prove it-FELIX!" _

_I rolled my eyes as the other boy entered the clearing, saw Pan without his shirt on, looked down at his abs (which I'll admit were pretty nice), blushed, and then ran away. "See!"_

"_So what, Felix finds you attractive, doesn't mean __**I **__think you are-besides, didn't you want to make a deal or something?"_

"_Oh…right, anyway, I propose that we create a contract that states that you are not allowed to fall for my good looks and not be overcome by lust by my amazing eyes and body."_

"_Okay Peter, I've signed that contract, now can you put your shirt back on?"_

"_Why? Are you overcome by lust already by this fine art of my body?"_

"_No," I rejected immediately, "I just don't want to have to deal with Felix freaking out every time he sees you and you complaining tomorrow about sunburn."_

"_Never!" he declared adamantly, kicking his shirt closer to the edge of the clearing, "Not until you have admitted I'm attractive!"_

"_No."_

"_Yes."_

"_No."_

"_Yes."_

"_No."_

"_Why not?" he whined like a child and I smirked._

"_Because your ego is already bigger than this island, we don't need to add to it."_

"_Buttttttt Keeeeeeeennnndddrrrraaaaaa!"_

"_Fine," he jumped up in joy before leaning in close to her my compliment. I leaned even closer and his eyes were widening, "You at least don't have missing teeth."_

_He scowled and I pulled away just before his swipe and flew up into the air, him following to try and catch me._

-/Tea Shop/-

"Kendra, Kendra, wake up! We need your help! Kendra!"

-/Tea Shop/-

"_Kendra?" Felix asked, finding me by the cliffs one sunset. _

"_Yes?" He sat down next to me._

"_Can you keep a secret?"_

"_Of course I can, what has been bothering you? You've been quiet all week."_

"_I'm always quiet."_

"_Yeah but I know when to look for your voice and you just weren't speaking-so what's up?"_

"_I think…I think I might be attracted…" I heard a sniffle and turned to him, finding light tears falling down his cheeks. I wiped them away quickly._

"_Hey, hey, hey, Felix, it's alright, whatever it is I'm here for you. What is it?"_

"_I think I might…be attracted to…" more sniffles, "boys…other boys…Kendra I'm sorry, sorry!"_

"_What are you sorry for? Hey stop crying, it's alright, you're perfectly fine. Why are you crying?"_

"_Because it's wrong!" he sobbed, pushing his face into his hands and I immediately pulled it free, forcing him to look at me._

"_No, it's not," I told him, "You are perfectly right in who you care for-Felix, I've met many people like you. Some accepting, some hating themselves but I'm going to tell you what I told them: they love who they love and that's perfectly fine and you shouldn't let anyone tell you differently. In legends, I've even heard of my own species like their same sex."_

"_Really?" he sniffed and I wiped more tears off his face._

"_Her name is Soraya-you know I've never met them, but she's been known to love another woman. You can't help who you fall in love with."_

"_And your Mate?"_

"_Never met them."_

"_And if they are female?"_

"_Then I'd likely be able to share more traits and views with them."_

"_And if they are male?"_

"_Then that's cool as well, totally get to mess with them for all of eternity."_

"_And if I like another guy?"_

"_We've already been through this, it's okay, and I accept you and support you and I'll help you in any way I possibly can."_

"_Yeah?"_

"_Of course," I smiled._

-/Tea Shop/-

"C'mon Kendra, time to wake up now," a voice called, shaking me awake. I hummed, comfortable in my drowsy warmth but I cracked my eyes open anyway. Smiling dopily as I came face to face with Snow.

"Hi, Snow," I cooed, waving my arms about.

"Hi, Kendra, it's time to wake up."

"Why?" I whined curling up into a ball but Snow would have none of it as she dragged me up from the ground. I transformed back into a human rubbed my eyes. "Whass…going on?"

"Time to go kid, got to go stop Cora," Emma told me. I snapped awake with a snap.

"Listen here blondie-I 'ain't no kid, I'm older than Rumple!"

"Okay Kendra, we'll talk about this later, now we need to stop Cora and Hook."

"They're a team again? Ugh they don't work so well together," I muttered, following them out of Rumple's cage, "Why's there a huge hole in his cage?"

"Later," Emma told me and I nodded.

"Wait. I can't go. You have to tie me up," Aurora announced. Wait, wait-wait a moment! What?

"What?" I asked.

"No. I'm not leaving without you." I turn to Snow.

"Are they a thing?" I whispered and Snow elbowed me, giving me a harsh look. I just shrugged in reply.

"I can't be trusted, not as long as Cora has my heart."

"WHAT HAPPENED WHILE I WAS GONE!?"

"I'll tell you later!" Snow scorned me.

"Then I will get your heart back for you," Mulan promised.

"Mulan-"

"I will."

"Mulan…" Emma said and the woman looked over, "We gotta go."

"Do it." And Mulan pulled out some rope and proceeded to tie her up. "Good luck."

"Thank you," Snow replied to Aurora, "Good luck to you."

-/Tea Shop/-

We got there just in time as Snow shot an arrow between them and making them lose the compass. "You're not going anywhere! This portal's taking us home! The compass-get it."

And then the fight began. I transformed back into my Phoenix form and began conjuring fireballs and throwing them at Cora to the best of my ability-I hadn't done this in a long time so my aim and power were definitely off unlike Snow's.

Hook and Emma were having an interesting struggle until Cora disappeared and Mulan accidentally hit the satchel which I assumed held Aurora's heart. For one fateful second time stood still in our bodies as it flew across the pool of water until it almost splashed in but was interrupted by Killian's hook catching it by the strap. "I may be a pirate, but I bristle at the thought of a woman losing her heart, unless it's over me."

"I could almost kiss you," I shouted across the chasm and Hook grinned.

"Why don't you?"

"You know why!" I replied before resuming the fight, Mulan having to leave to go save Aurora.

"Go!"

"No, but you need the compass."

"And Aurora needs her heart," Snow rebuttled.

It took Mulan a moment but she agreed, handing over her sword, "Take it. It deflects her magic."

"Cool, good luck Mulan!" I waved and began throwing more and more fireballs around them. I left Snow to Cora once I saw Killian leaning over Emma.

"When I jab you with my sword, you'll feel it," he told her and I couldn't resist shouting.

"Is this a penis metaphor?" And Cora threw a ball of magic at my back, knocking me to the ground. It didn't injure me, just surprised me. I heard a thump before hearing Emma shout,

"Now let's go home!"

I got up quickly and followed her.

-/Tea Shop/-

I circled around the scene as I watched them fight before seeing Cora at my back. I zeroed in on her and swooped down with all my speed just to have her physically throw me to the side. And it hurt…a lot. I just stayed there for a while. Not really wanting to move.

"Why do you want to go to StoryBrooke?" Snow asked.

"Because my daughter needs me. And now I'm going to give her the one thing she's always wanted-your heart. Good-bye, Snow."

"Oh fudge," my eyes widened and I shot up from the ground, back in my human form. Just in time to see Emma switch places with Snow.

"Emma!" Snow yelled.

"Oh, you foolish girl," Cora sneered. "Don't you know? Love is weakness." And then Cora was trying-and failing-to rip out her heart and I started moving forward, time coming back to me.

"No. It's _strength_." And Emma began to glow and I was moving forward and a big force of white light shot out and knocked both Cora and I to the ground.

"Holy fishing fish! What the fish was that?!" I yelled from the ground as Snow and Emma had a mother-daughter moment.

"What was that?"

"_That_ is a great subject for discussion…when we get home," Snow replied excitedly, before rushing towards the edge and dragging me up, "Let's go Kendra."

"Cool, awesome, fantastic."

Emma and Snow held onto the compass and I held onto their hands, not really needed it to help guide me as Snow asked, "You ready?"

"Yeah."

"Totally."

"Let's go."

Before we promptly jumped into the portal.

-/Tea Shop/-

Emma and Snow just dragged themselves up over the well edge but I just transformed back and just flew, perching myself on a branch as I drowsily watched Emma, Snow, and Henry reunite. When Red and Snow decided to leave the scene I dragged myself off the branch and pulled every aching muscle there was through the forest and back to the pawn shop. Seb was waiting outside with open arms and I snuggled myself into them eagerly.

"I've missed you so much these past few days," I murmured into his shoulder. We felt the pulse of True Love and I looked at Seb in confusion-will ask later.

"I've missed you too, oh Kendra…god why do you even get into these battles? Your shirt has so many cuts and bruises."

"I don't know."

"We've always known you weren't a warrior, neither am I, so stop…please stop."

"I know, I know." He rubbed my back as I turned back into a human. I looked past us to find soft green eyes in the midst of shadow crinkling back to me. He was proud.

"How many times have you changed?"

"More than I should have-I need to take it easy."

"Yes, let's get you home."

"But I haven't greeted Henry yet…"

"You can do that tomorrow-he can wait till the morning."

I nodded, my eyes drifting shut as he carried my human form across the roads, through the shop, up the stairs, and onto my bed, but I was already asleep.

-/Tea Shop/-

"_Welcome to Paradise," the Phoenix called Tera greeted, finding me resting on one of the low branches, "I'm sorry the circumstances were so severe. We hope that with time you can smile again."_

_I nodded, feeling the tears begin to well. I looked around. "I thought there were more of us."_

"_Sometimes there is but those that have died will not be reincarnated for a few more millenniums."_

"_So it's just us for now?"_

"_Well, one of us, Soraya, has not returned for quite some time."_

"_Soraya?" I perked up, "I've heard of her-why isn't she here?"_

"_She didn't…__**approve **__of you."_

_I sat up, confused, "Why?"_

"_Soraya, for a long time believed that Phoenixes could only be true if they were born that way. When she discovered of your existence she had trouble accepting that you were one of us," at the look of my face she quickly added, "But she's more accepting now ever since she met her Mate Naomi, but it may be some time before she's ready to meet you. Don't take offense, we were all a little prejudiced at first but we've become more open and wise these past few centuries, seeing the world change and bloom."_

"_And I'll meet her?"_

"_One day yes, she's a very youthful woman."_

_I nodded, wiping away the tears that burned my flesh and weighed too heavy on my skin._


	16. Soraaaayyyaaaaa (Sorry For Not Updating)

**Chapter Sixteen: The Unwanted Guest**

_His eyes held wonder as he touched my pale flesh, warmth radiating and his calloused hands reaching up to cup my chin. "Kendra?" He asked, not sure if he believed it or not._

_"It's me, it's me," I whispered, tears falling down my face._

_"Shh, don't cry, why are you crying?" His eyes were tender and I heard a twig snap in the distance-_

I jerked awake with my whole body spasming and convulsing and shuddering until I fell off my bed and onto the hardwood below, a cry of agony escaping my chapped lips at the burn and sting of my muscles. I was heaving and panting and silent tears were rolling down my face as I twisted my limbs, ignoring the ache and sting, and pulled myself back onto the bed, plopping into the sheets. Another groan and stuttering of teeth against mouth against pain as I pulled the blanket down my feverish body, kicking it off the side before resting my against the pillow once more. Sweat and fear hung in the air as I took shuddering breaths and as my too fast heart and the vile hum of my jittering body lulled me to sleep I felt a cool washcloth press to my head and a familiar shadows laughter in the distance-the two forces as different as the fire and ice that created them.

-/Tea Shop/-

I woke up a few hours later and went about my day: showering, changing, brushing, grooming, and lying to myself in the mirror that last night I was not plagued with sour dreams and Bad Shadows-no I had nice little meadow and rainbow dreams with Rufio, Henry, Felix, and I, all going to the playground and eating cotton candy and pooping rainbows and riding unicorns and discovering all the riches in the world that we all dreamed of._ Of course_ that's what happened last night in my dreams.

I did not later in the night dream of being chained up like I had when I once got in a bad spot with some raiders and gypsies and later in said dream imagined Peter Pan taking the torturer's place and racking nails and sharp edges of steel and implements of the pointy and tortuous variety. I didn't dream of him opening every wound just moments before it closed with his jagged nails and viscous grin on his face as blood cascaded down my bruised body. I didn't dream of him leaning in close to my ear and whispering in a voice that cut harsher and deeper than any dagger or blade or knife, "You did this to yourself."

No I didn't dream of it because I dreamt of rainbows and unicorns.

Once I got downstairs to the shop, I was greeted with Red and Sebastian kissing softly over the counter and I chuckled, shaking my head and pouring myself a cup of black tea and quickly bringing the bitterness to my lips. I sat down at one of the tables, trying to not let the dream or my pain creep up on me with sharp claws. The doorbell chimed as my fingers traced the soft lines on the table. "Kendra Jones?" an eager voice spoke and I looked up.

There was a girl, maybe a year younger then me, with hazel eyes and dirty blonde hair. Freckles fell down her cheeks like dust and her orbs popped with the purple ensemble she wore clashing with their darkness. Pale white wash lilac jeans, blue vans, deep purple blazer, and gradient turquoise top made me squint-did I _know_ her? "Umm yes…and you are?"

"Charlotte-but call me Charlie. But that's not why I'm here though," she introduced, her voice eager.

"O…kay?" I was confused. No one _ever_ seeked me out for anything. Suspicion began to settle into my bones as she sat down across from me, leaning forward to get a better look at me.

"Oh wow…Wow! You _are_ pretty."

"What?"

"Wow he didn't leave a single detail out," she sounded fascinated and my eyes narrowed in on her, "And after one look," she shook her head, "I wish I had a guy who described me that way."

"What? What are you talking about?"

But she just continued on, "He even got the eye thing right-wow my god…that boy mmmphm!"

"Excuse me," I said, snapping my fingers in her face to grab her attention, "Who are you talking about and what did you want?"

"Well I was in the diner the other day and I heard you speaking to the Dark One's girl."

"...and?" I was unsure where this was going.

"Well I heard about Peter Pan and I wasn't sure because the conversation was going so fast and you left too quickly for me to ask-but I wanted to make sure."

"Make sure what!? You keep dodging-what did you want to know?!"

"I wanted to know if you were really her-Peter Pan's True Love."

"Well I'm not-"

"I know you are, he told me himself-"

"What?" I said, disbelief clear in my voice but the rage and confusion overpowering it. What did this girl know? Why did Peter talk to her? Did Peter say he loved me? "What do you know?" I growled.

"Well, back in our world, I used to work at the tavern."

"Oh god," I groaned leaning back and covering my eyes with my hands. Peter told me that for a long time, before he met me, before he met the _Lost Boys_, he went to the taverns a lot-lost and unsure of what to do, his grief and depression for what he'd done to Rumple still fresh and clear in his mind. "What did he do?"

"He was drunk."

"Of course he was but what did he do-Charlie was it?"

She nodded, "Well…he was in need of some company."

My heart creaked savagely in my chest, threatening to shatter, "He didn't…he didn't want your _services _did he?"

"Actually…he did," my nails extended instantly, digging into the wood harshly and causing marks, I growled, "Hey-hey-hey-we actually didn't get to do much-"

"Get to? You sound _disappointed_."

"He took off his shirt, we did stuff-he's attractive-" I snarled. "Don't blame me! Blame genetics for that fine piece of ass-"

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't rip your throat out with my talons and teeth?"

"I was just trying to let you know what you were missing out on!"

"I _know_ what I'm missing out on Charlie-I _know."_

"Isn't his butt great?"

"Yes, now stop. Lusting. After. _My_. Mate!" the china cup in my hand broke in my grip and the entire thing shattered, digging into my flesh.

"Oh thank god you also like him-"

"WHY?" I exploded and Sebastian snapped to me as the soft hum of the shop muted instantly.

"Because the way he described you…he was so heartbroken and in love and I was the one who had to hold him while he cried drunkenly about you."

"What?" I whispered…he-he cried about me?

"He was drunk, he probably doesn't even remember it, but he spoke about how your eyes were as green as his own and that sometimes when you thought he wasn't looking he saw your eyes turn honey and then burning gold. He told me that when he first saw you human he saw glass shards in your eyes that didn't break your soul but his. That when you smiled like you do now your head tilts and your eyebrows quirk, that when no one is looking you look broken and how he always wanted to fix that," hot gasoline tears rolled down my cheeks as she grabbed my hand tightly before jerking away at the burn, "How every time he touched your skin it burned like hot needles piercing his skin but how he'd keep holding you. That he was jealous."

"Jealous?" I cried, "Jealous of what?"

"That he knew he was never yours."

"He was always mine."

"You know he told me about that day," Charlie told me and I wiped away my tears harshly. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Red holding Sebastian back, whispering softly in his ear,

"Did he now?" I laughed, disgusted with myself-god how did I _not_ notice these things? "What did he say?"

"That when he saw you with his best friend, his whole world tore apart."

"When I saw him…when I realized what had happened…so did mine."

She was about to say something when I got up and sprinted out of the store, leaping up into the air and changing despite the pain that went along with it.

-/Tea Shop/-

I needed to get something that relaxed me. And since I decided against going back to the shop to get some tea, I instead chose to go to a grocery store and get some chocolate-the second best choice. I omnomnomed on that thing with vicious jerks and soft licks until I felt better. It took about three large bars to do the trick and I still had one left over. And then I ran into Henry and Emma who were getting taco stuff and we reunited with Henry not letting me go for quite some time.

"Do you want to come help us?" he asked and I agreed, following them back to the apartment. "Hey. Guess what. Taco shells were on sale," Henry announced as he came back inside.

"Apparently, tacos not a big item in the Enchanted-"

"What are you guys still doing in bed?" Henry asked and I looked up and stared in shock at Snow and Charming naked with only a sheet to cover themselves in their bed-out in the open. I almost laughed at Henry's innocence, "It's the middle of the afternoon." I looked Emma and she was horrified-no _petrified_.

"The trip back was tiring and I needed to rest," Snow came up with and I restrained myself from face palming.

"And I needed to…help her rest," Charming added and I did face palm myself that time.

"Uh, let's-let's go make tacos. Kendra," Emma said and I nodded, leading Henry away from the scene. "We have to make a lot because there's gonna be a ton of people at Granny's Welcome Back Party tonight."

I helped Henry unpack and Emma later joined us.

We were making tacos!

-/Tea Shop/-

I decided against going to the party and instead decided to go to a bar. I wasn't inclined to get alcohol-oh hell no-but I figured there were pool tables and dart boards and probably people there with interesting stories behind their hidden tattoos or piercings.

I ended up finding Charlie there.

"Oh fuc-" she started.

"What are you doing here?"

"I work here, what are _you_ doing here?"

"Looking for a good time."

"How old _are _you?" Charlie asked, her eyes squinting.

Just then a guy walked by with one of the charmingest grins on his face, carrying a tray full of glasses and walking behind the bar counter, "Charlie, don't you know? Never ask a woman for her age," he leaned forward, extending his hand and his blue eyes sparkled, "Hi, I'm Zach and you are?"

"Kendra, pleasure to meet you Zach."

"Peter," Charlie reminded in my ear before pulling away and serving more drinks. I scowled at her before hopping on the stool.

"What can I get you Miss Kendra?" he asked, turning around to face the walls of alcohol. He held a bottle of scotch in his hands.

"A shirley temple and give me lots of cherries." He almost dropped the bottle and he began to fumble turning around quickly.

"Really? So you _are_ younger than twenty one?"

"Oh no, I'm at least a few millenniums, no I just don't like to get drunk."

"Bad reaction? Memories? Events?" Zach pondered, filling up the glass with sprite.

"No but I've seen what it does to people."

"Friend then? Or family? Maybe even a lover," his voice grew deep at the suggestion before handing me a glass.

I snorted, "You could say that," before taking a huge gulp of the drink.

-/Tea Shop/-

"_I fear the Queen will never change," Cricket spoke at the round table we sat at. I laced my fingers with Seb's and laid my head on his shoulder as he stared intensely at Red from across the room. "We must dispense justice."_

"_Agreed," Charming replied at the 'head' of the table, "What are our options?"_

"_How about giving me five minutes alone with her and my axe?" Grumpy suggested. I rolled my eyes. "She's still restrained, right?"_

"_Yes, but the magic that we used to capture her will only keep her powerless for a short while," the Blue Fairy replied._

"_How about banishing her to another realm?" Granny suggested as she continued on knitting._

"_We can't!" Conscious objected, "It would be unconscionable to condemn another realm to the suffering that we've endured."_

"_Jiminy's right," Red agreed and Seb tensed and then relaxed at the sound of her voice. "She's our problem, and we have to deal with her."_

"_And only one thing is certain-" Charming announced, standing up, "As long as the Queen lives, the kingdom is in danger."_

"_Are you saying…" Snow asked._

"_Yes. We must kill the Queen. Thank you all."_

_We all got up to leave._

-/Tea Shop/-

A woman with tan skin and smoldering brown eyes sat next to me, her brown hair flipping to the side when she looked over. I stared back as she looked me up and done before saying, "I can see it."

I groaned-the words sounding so much like Charlie's first to me.

"Oh god please tell me you aren't another one of his conquests?"

The woman laughed and another with even darker skin joined us, wrapping her arm possessively around the first woman and kissing her neck, growling, "_Him_? And _who_ would _he_ be?" The woman with dark skin looked up from her hispanic partner and her eyes flashed a dangerous shade of gold and I dropped my glass on the bar-thankfully not shattering it.

"Holy shit," I whispered, staring at the woman across from me with wide eyes that flashed golden as well.

"Soraya," she introduced, extending a hand, "And you must be Kendra."

"Double shit."

The couple laughed and Soraya settled into the seat next to her.

"Why are you here?" I asked, astonishment clear in my voice, "_How_ are you here?"

"Well our brother called and told me that you were having a rough time," Soraya answered.

"And I've been pestering Sora here for centuries to get to meet you," the hispanic woman, who I figured was Naomi, replied.

"Which leads me to _how_ are you here."

"Well we flew of course!" Naomi laughed.

"No, I mean…I mean you're human! Naomi, you should be dead-I've heard of you centuries ago."

"Don't be silly," the woman smiled, placing her hand on my knee comfortingly, "Don't you know? Mates are tied eternally."

"I know that but-"

"And in doing so we can only breathe, live, and _die_ together."

"So you mean-"

"Sebastian and his mate won't die separately-you and your mate won't die separately-_none_ of us can die or live separate," Soraya explained.

And I let out a breath that I didn't know I was even holding.

-/Tea Shop/-

That night I stumbled into the apartment, drunk and warm with alcohol buzzing through my veins for the first time in forever but the lights were dark. The air was cold and my eyes squinted at the harsh contours of the Shadows around me. There were...one-twa...four…I stumbled forward, my fingers dancing across the air as my hazy mind tried to understand...six-"JOY TO THE WORLD-oh fu-no, no. Non no non no no nooo...I meant...TEN! THERE ARE TEN OF YOU~!" I exclaimed happily, achieved for being right.

Or was I wrong?

Or am I drunk? I giggled.

"But more are coming," the wisp of darkness curled his words at my ears.

"More and more," another agreed.

"Until we've gotten what we came for," they all chorused together and the lights turned on-and they disappeared.

"THEY DISAPPEARED! OH MY GOD!" I practically yelled as I waved my arms about. "Where are theeeeyyy? Where'd THEY GO, I MISS THEM SO, IT'S LIKE IT'S BEEN FOREEEVVVER SINCE you've been gone-just kidding I hate those things-oh, hi, Sebastian! Nice pjs-is that flanel? Why aren't you wearing a shirt? Did interrupt something with you and Red?" Sebbbbby's worried eyes glazed over my state of dress and ushered me closer, dragging me slowly up the stairs and to the apartment. Red was in the kitchen heating up some food. "I KNEW it! Food sex-that's gross Seb you kinky bastard-do we have any peaches, I loooooovve peaches, peaches are the best-why'd I ever give em up-oh that's right, Romulus-why am I crying?"

Tears were in both of their eyes as they sat me down and handed my a bowl of pasta and sat down next to me. I wolfed it down-hahaha get it? _wolf_ because Red! HA HA...ha ha...heh…

"Kendra," Sebastian started and I looked up from the carbs.

"Yeeeeasssss? Wassup?"

"We have some bad news."

"Oh cool-I love bad news, bad news is the best, bad news makes you cry and crying is fun-or should it be the other way aroud?...I don't care I'm _wasted_."

"How many bottles did you have?"

"Like…" I held up my fingers, "Two...or was it three-it was at _least_ one."

Seb groaned and muttered, "I always knew you'd be a lightweight."

"Archie died," Red told me and everything went still. I stared at her for a few minutes, squinting and rubbing my eyes until I promptly began to laugh hysterically.

And then I proceeded to sprint to the bathroom and throw up.

-/Tea Shop/-

I was wearing black. Black hat, black tank, black jacket, black skirt, black fishnet tights, black heels, black lipstick, black makeup, and even the tips of my hair were black instead of the gold they normally were. My flashing eyes turned murky green and I couldn't help but sigh in the mirror. I looked like I did the first time my heart fractured.

I looked like I was going to a funeral.

-/Tea Shop/-

"Some of us knew him as Archie," Mary Margaret's voice was breaking as she spoke to the coffin, "Others as Jiminy." I took Henry's hand in mine; he squeezed it tightly. "But we all knew him as a true friend." Red stood behind me with Seb and Pongo's leash was lightly in Henry's grasp. I kissed the crown of the younger boy's head. "And though he may now be gone he will always live on inside of us, reminding us to be our best selves…to do the right thing, to always fight for what we believe in. So we shouldn't think of today as goodbye, just as a way of saying…'Archie, we'll be listening.'" Snow turned away to go into the arms of Charming as Geppetto stepped forward with Archie's umbrella.

Emma, Henry, and I stepped away to go walk Pongo around but I could still hear every word he spoke, the sadness he felt infecting my being.

-/Tea Shop/-

When we got back to the apartment, Henry immediately went to the bed and I found myself in the bathroom changing my clothes to a pair of jeans, a black cropped tank, my blackshaw, and converse before going back to the bed and laying silently next to still child. I rubbed soothing circles on his back and just let him be with his thoughts.

Emma broke the silence, "Hey, kid. You hungry? I managed to wrangle up a pop-tart."

"No, thanks." I curled a little further into the boy. Emma dropped the pop tart next to us and walked away to talk with Snow.

-/Tea Shop/-

An hour later Henry was curled up into my Phoenix bird warmth and we doze slightly, in an unsure state between being awake and sleep. So I told him soft stories, "When I first met him I was numb."

"Who?"

"The man I love," I whispered and he snuggled closer, my feathers wrapped around him, "He was too, bitter and mischievous. He didn't know how to distinguish the line between cruelty and kindness. We…_helped_ each other."

"Fixed you mean?" Henry didn't state it as a question.

I chuckled, "Yes…we _fixed_ each other as you say. We became friends first and then the bestest of friends. It took reincarnations upon reincarnations before I even found that our own line was blurring."

"Really? It wasn't…instant? Like Mary Margaret's and David's?"

"No…" I paused, smiling, rubbing the boy into relaxation, "No our love-or what we had of it-was like a building. We had layers and foundation and even that little piece of furniture that clashed with the whole room but we kept it anyway. We had a kitchen built for a town and more halls and rooms than we needed and it went on and on and on. It would've been a beautiful house to live in with him."

"But you didn't buy it in time," Henry concluded. I nodded, hugging him tighter.

"One day we'll get it right."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because if I know my Peter, he never fails. And once he starts something, he always intends to finish it."

"Is that all? Belief in his willpower?"

"There's also that niggling thing called True Love, but I like to focus more on who we are then what we are."

He smiled and I felt our lazy bodies relax and his dazed mind pull into a soft nap. I slowly transferred my body out from under him, kissing his forehead before getting up. I softly farewelled the True Lovers and left the apartment.

-/Tea Shop/-

I found Soraya and Naomi back at the tea shop, Red and Sebastian speaking softly with them across the table. They looked up when I entered and I quickly plopped down next to them, rubbing my eyes, groaning from the stress. "When will this be_ over_," I whined pitifully.

"Didn't you say this during the Curse? What are you waiting for now?" Seb groaned. Red kissed his cheeks when I peeked up.

"For _him_ to come."

"Oh, _oh_…_him_," Naomi smirked, looking at me with a sultry grin, "Is _he_ who I think _he_ is?"

Soraya nudged her lover, "Oh shush you, don't tease the poor girl."

"Uhhhhhhhh," I groaned.

"He'll come," Red promised, looking over at Seb she added, "They always do."

"Argh, it's easy for _you guys_ to say that," I muttered before a string of garbled letters and noises fell out of my mouth in annoyance.

Naomi softly rubbed my back, "There, there little one, your family is here for you."

I peered up again and smiled softly at the group of Protector, Werewolf, Human, and Warrior, all of them staring down at their Pantomath, me, with soft grins of their own.

I succumbed to their warmth easily.


	17. All of de feels (?)

**Chapter Seventeen: Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels**

Sebastian woke me up in the middle of the night, "Kendra," he whispered.

"Whhhmmmutt?" I mumbled, shooing him away.

"I need you to watch Henry for me," he told me, shaking me awake.

"Why?"

"There's been an accident."

My eyes opened wide awake at that.

-/Tea Shop/-

Granny thanked me when I came over, telling me how she had really wanted to go to Bingo night, and I smiled, hugging Henry when he rushed into my arms. "Do you know what's going on?" he asked and I shook my head no.

"But, hey, it's past your bedtime so you should go to bed," I encouraged pushing him up the stairs. He gave me a look and as an incentive I added, "I'll tell you one of my stories."

His eyes squinted before he quickly turned around and sprinted up the steps two at a time. I followed behind at a more relaxed pace.

I sat down next to him on the bed and smiled. "So which story are you going to tell?"

"Have I ever told you the story about Felix's, Rufio's, and my journey to the forbidden caves?"

"No-why were they forbidden?"

"Because," I whispered, leaning in close with a glint surely in my eyes, "that's where the mermaid's swam."

"Mermaids?"

"Oh yes," I smiled.

-/Tea Shop/-

Henry had fallen asleep a long time ago after recounting the story of Nereida, the mermaid who gifted me with the sounds of her siren songs and the nature of mermaids. Nereida took a fondness to the young Rufio and Felix as well as me but she died many decades later from fishermen. Nereida was the kindest mermaid I had ever met and followed the kind words of Ursula with her own sweetness. Back then the mermaids were happier and calmer to us, especially on the island.

I didn't take a genius to realize what had happened to destroy that peace, what with me being gone and Peter surely raging.

I crept down the stairs softly and went to the kitchen to turn the kettle on, hoping for sweet tea relief. I found a few packets of chamomile in the cabinets and grabbed one, plonking it into one of the many ceramic cups, waiting for the kettle to steam.

I sighed, rubbing my neck and eyes in exhaustion before jumping out of my skin when I felt the ghost of a breath on my neck.

I turned around quickly and came face to chest with one of the Shadows, a playful smirk on his face, "Hello love," he purred and I raised my brow. This was a new development.

"Hi Shadow, any reason for your visit?"

"He wouldn't let me come without him," a deeper voice of Pan's growled and I turned quickly to find another Shadow leaning against the door with angry eyes.

"Umm hi? Why are there two of you?" I asked, pointing between the two. A third one appeared with a haughty look on his face.

"You would think she would remember us visiting her the other day," his voice was conceded and he looked down at me from where he sat on the counter, inspecting his nails out of the corner of his eyes.

A softer Shadow appeared, threading his fingers through mine with that grin that I fell for, "Hi Kendra," he whispered and I immediately realized this was the Shadow I talked with more than-

My wrist was yanked and I saw the cruel smile on his face before he let go of me, letting me fall to the ground. "Worthless piece of shi-" he muttered before Conceited Shadow grabbed Evil Shadow and they disappeared. Suave Shadow smirked at me, leaned in close, and whispered in a gravelly voice (that somehow sent shivers of…uhhh…stuff down my spine),

"Bye hot stuff," before pecking my neck for a long moment and disappearing with a "Ta!"

Sweet Shadow looked uncomfortable and wounded so I kissed his cheek softly and mumbled, "I like you the most." Angry Shadow growled from his place at the door before sauntering forward, stopping, and leaning across the counter, staring down at me like I was his prey; I gulped, "What can I do for you?"

"You can start by coming back-you ruined _everything_." You know what? I changed his name from Angry Shadow to Angst Shadow.

"You know I can't go back yet," I told him.

"_Why the hell not!?_"

"Because I can't!"

"You're ruining everything! Why won't you come back? You're so selfish and-"

"When will you come back?" the soft voice of Sweet Shadow interrupted, batting his eyelashes. I melted. Sweet Shadow was most definitely the nicest Shadow and he was especially cavity-inducing and comforting today.

"When Pan needs the Truest Believer."

Conceited Shadow popped in again once more onto the counter, "It's interesting you call him Pan."

Another Shadow appeared with eyes dead and voice haunted, "Because he isn't her Peter anymore."

And then they all disappeared at once, leaving me in complete darkness once more.

-/Tea Shop/-

"You were out all night. Where were you?" Henry asked, coming down the stairs once the others returned. I slowly trailed behind him, having gone upstairs after my tea to sleep. "Granny wouldn't tell me anything and Kendra had no clue. Did I miss it all?"

"Cereal okay?" David asked, picking up some of the food.

"Yeah."

"Rumpelstiltskin and Captain Hook had a fight, and someone got hurt," MM explained, pouting from the kettle.

"We weren't sure if Dr. Frankenstein could fix him, but he did," Emma leaned against the counter and I hummed, remembering the man when I had travel to his world once.

"Doctor? _Oh._ That's who Whale is," Henry nodded, allowing the puzzle piece to click in his mind.

"Yeah, but without the neck bolts."

"The monster had the bolts, not the doctor," Henry told her and I added,

"Yeah and it wasn't even a monster. It was his deceased brother who he missed."

"Right, but either way, some of us having known him…it's weird."

"It's not weird. We're past it. We were cursed," Snow interjected and I raised a brow.

"It's a little weird," I told her.

"What are you talking about?" Henry asked and I kissed his head, chuckling at the poor oblivious child.

"Nothing," Charming told the boy, placing the cereal in front of them.

"Wait-"

"Really, it's nothing," Snow tried to steer the topic away. Henry turned around and sprinted to his book and David called after him.

The boy came back with the book, "Frankenstein isn't in here. It's not even a fairy tale. That means it comes from another land-"

"-That is correct-"

"-with different stories," Henry finished.

"Eat," Emma told him, placing the bowl closer to him, "I really wanna go to bed."

"If the Curse went to places with other stories, then who knows who else is in this town?"

There was a knock on the door and then in came Rumpelstiltskin without an invitation-rude-with a serious face.

"Gold," Emma greeted, "We've all had a long night."

"You remember that favor you owe me, Miss Swan?"

"Yeah."

"I'm cashing it in," he replied quickly. David stepped forward.

"It's not…a good…"

"You do honor your agreements, don't you?" we were silent so he continued, "I need to find someone, so we're leaving today. Pack your bag."

"Leaving?" Mary Margaret called.

"Well, where?" Henry added.

"Wait," Emma paused, "Find someone? Who?"

"My son. It has to be today because every minute I'm here, is a minute close to me killing Hook. So it's really best for all concerned if I leave, and you're gonna come with me. Oh, and, um, we have a long history, so know this and now it to be true. If any harm comes to Belle while I'm gone, I'm killing all of you," Henry shuddered in Emma's arms, "I'll see you at noon."

-/Tea Shop/-

They left a few hours later and I flew an hour after that, trailing slowly behind them in my Phoenix form. Henry and Emma were excruciatingly surprised when I showed up dolled up in a pair of white jeans, red tank, long black jacket, my brown boots, a scarf, and a bag with a grin and a plane ticket for me.

"I've missed New York," I sighed in explanation, sitting down next to them, "It's been so long since I've had my friend Rosmerta's cupcakes-she makes the _best_ ones."

They hummed in agreement, going along with my explanation.

-/Tea Shop/-

It actually didn't take that long for us to land in New York but what really shocked me was that Rumple didn't even bat an eyelash when he saw me, much less got furious. But soon enough we had landed and then piled into a taxi before being driven to some unknown apartment where Baelfire resided. We soon got out of the car and Rumple stood still outside in the damp streets of New York, staring at the building. "What's wrong? " Henry asked eyes worryingly checking Rumple's.

"This is the right place?" Emma added.

"Yes, it is."

"Let me guess. He's not expecting you," Rumple did not reply to Emma, "Well, who doesn't love a surprise?"

I took Henry's hand in mine to keep his fingers warm as we walked forward. We went inside the building and Henry eagerly searched the name listings before muttering, "No Baelfire."

"Doesn't surprise me," I muttered leaning against the wall.

"Yeah, that probably wouldn't fly as an alias," Emma added before turning to Gold, "Your magic globe didn't give you an apartment number?"

"It doesn't work that way," Rumple replied, looking at the names himself. I watched Henry move away from them.

"Do any of these names mean anything to you?"

"Well, names are what I traffic in, but sadly, no." Emma pointed to a number.

"Here's your boy."

"No. Or it could just be a vacant."

"You might traffic in names and magic, but I traffic in finding people that don't wanna be found, and those sort of folks don't like to advertise their whereabouts," Emma pressed the button before saying, "U.P.S. package for 407."

It disconnected.

"Maybe you should have said FedEx."

We heard a crash and clank before Emma realized, "He's running." We came out just in time to see a man climbing down the fire escape as quickly as possible.

"That-that favor you owe me-this is it," Rumple told her, "Get him to talk to me. I-I can't run."

Emma nodded and before she sprinted off, looked at Rumple and me, "Watch Henry. I'll be back." Their race was on.

-/Tea Shop/-

"Don't worry. Emma's really good at catching people," Henry told Gold as I munched on a Cinnamon Sugar Pretzel and man they were _gooood_.

"Well, my son's been running away for a long time now. Now I have a feeling he's equally adept at it."

"_Rumple_," I whined, cold seeping into my bones from an interesting elixir of sadness and New York winter weather.

"Well, at least we found him, right?"

"Indeed."

"Oh, and, uh, thanks for the hot dog. I forgot," the little munchkin thanked.

I smiled as did Rumple, "You are quite welcome."

"Dankyou, Wumple," I added sugarly and he smiled at me as well-have you ever gotten a smile form Rumpelstiltskin? It's like getting a smile from Voldemort-it is AMAZING oh my god Dark Ones' smiles are amazing like I've been to many alternate worlds and I've met a lot of bad guys but Rumple's is undoubtedly the best. Better than Voldemort's cute little grin when he blushes and much better than like all of the bad guys' smiles. Rumple just beats them all. I can see what Belle sees in him-I bet she's addicted to his real smile like crack. I would be too.

"And thank you," Rumple added, looking down at Henry.

"For what?"

"Well, if it wasn't for you bringing Emma to StoryBrooke, none of this would have come to pass."

"Eh," I shrugged, "Seb and I would've done something about it."

"You…" Mr. Gold continued, pointing at Henry, "Are a remarkable young man."

We had started walking, "You know… I forgave ...for giving me up. She thought it was the best for me then. That's why she did it. I'm sure your son will get it, too."

"Alas," Mr. Gold shifted, "the circumstances surrounding our separation weren't quite so noble."

"None of them truly are," I muttered darkly, shoving my face full of cinnamon sugar after.

"But…you're here now," ever the optimist Henry, "And you want him back, right?"

"More than anything."

"Then that's all that matters."

I wish I could agree but I knew also harshly that destiny can keep you apart.

-/Tea Shop/-

I was dozing lightly when Emma came back so when Gold started buzzing buttons repeatedly, my eyes flew open, "Gold what are you doing!"

There was a buzz and then a clank and we rushed to follow through the open door, "I'm finding my son."

"He's gone," Emma reasoned.

"But he lives here. He'll be back, and I'll be waiting."

"Stop," Emma was way to eager to stop him, "You can't just break in."

"Yeah, well, actually, that's something I'm quite adept at."

I grabbed Henry's hand.

"He might not come back."

"Okay. Finding people is what you do, Ms. Swan. I'm simply going to assist you," he began to pick the lock, "There may be information in here-who he is, what he does, who he loves." Emma tensed.

"No, don't do this. There are things called laws."

"I'll be lookout," Henry decided, turning away.

"I'll join!"

"No, I…" she gave up and Henry turned around the corner, their bickering muting down.

-/Tea Shop/-

"Gold," Emma warned. The apartment was small, but clearly well used. "Come on, please. We really shouldn't be here."

"I don't think he's listening," Henry helpfully supplied.

"Agreed," I mumbled as I sifted through his pantry cabinets-no tea.

"You find something, dearie?"

"Nothing. Uh, it just looks like a dream catcher."

"Yeah, well, if it's nothing, why are you still holding it?" he sassed. I looked over and she was indeed still holding it. A look passed over his face, "You're lying to me."

"Just get back to looking, okay?" she dismissed.

"No, no, no, you saw something. Tell me."

"You'd don't know what you're-"

"TELL ME!" I saw Peter Pan's face for a moment and my heart stopped cold.

"Henry, Kendra, go wait in the bathroom."

"But I can help-"

"Henry, go!" Emma shouted as well. I stared at the woman but followed the boy to the bedroom. We sat down on the bed.

We were silent.

I didn't know what to do.

"Have I ever told you about the time I slayed a dragon?"

"Yes, you clawed it in the eye and tore out it's throat because it almost broke Sebastian's neck."

"What about my mother?"

He looked up, curiosity in his eyes, shaking his head no.

"No, what about her?"

"When I was little, she used to take me outside and set up a fire…"

-/Tea Shop/-

"GET OUT OF MY APARTMENT!" a man's voice roared.

-/Tea Shop/-

"Mom? Wh-what's going on?" Henry pled, fear and worry all in his stance. I stood from the doorway. Emma leaned down, soothing him, patting down his jacket.

"Who's this?" the man, Bealfire?, pointed at Henry.

Oh shit.

"My son."

Oh shit.

"What?"

Oh shit shit shit shit shit cakes,

"Is that Baelfire?" Henry asked, looking at the man. I reached for Henry trying to pull him away.

"I need you to stay in the other room for a little while longer, okay? Come on," Emma asked and I nodded, grabbing his hand.

"Wait. H-how old are you?"

Shit. Fu-

"Don't answer him," the mother ordered. I pulled Henry farther along.

"How old are you, kid?!"

"Eleven!" Henry shouted, "Now why is everyone yelling?"

"He's eleven?"

"Mom?"

Shit shit shit shit crap crap crap crappity crap crap dammit fu-

"Is this my son?"

"No. My dad was a fireman. He-he died," I glared at Emma, my heart sinking further and further into my chest. She told him lies? You _never_ lie to your family about family. "That's what you t-told me. You said..."

I had to turn away, I couldn't look at them.

"Is this…my son?"

I heard the whisper, felt the tension, every bone snapping and clicking together at once, the shift clear in the air as she spoke, "Yes."

He ran.

I jumped after him, Phoenix feathers trailing behind in a flurry.

-/Tea Shop/-

I snuggled up to Henry, hoping the heat of my body would warm him. "So that's him." I rubbed my cheek against his.

"Yeah," the Saviour sighed.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I never thought I would see him again. I never wanted to."

"Why not?" I asked, Henry nodded with me.

"He was a thief, Henry, a liar, a bad guy, and he…he broke my heart."

"I could have taken it, you know. The truth."

"I know. He was just a part of my life I…_wanted_ to forget." I could understand that, for the longest periods of time I felt the same but eventually you had to think about it and move on, to let it be put behind safely-not in a glass vault with a hurricane approaching. "That's why I didn't tell you. I was thinking of me, not you."

"I thought you were different, but you're just like her-Regina. She always lied to me, too." My talons grew sharp, wanting to dig into his skin as a warning. That was a cruel thing to say-over dramatic and _nobody_ should feel the pain surely spreading through Emma.

No one could fully tell everything to Henry-I knew I hadn't.

"I'm sorry."

"I wanna meet my dad."

Emma nodded and left to get Baelfire.

-/Tea Shop/-

Baelfire came out and I was draped across the Truest Believer's shoulders, "So…you're my dad."

"Yeah."

"I'm Henry."

"It's nice to meet you, Henry."

"Sorry I took so long."

"It's okay. You didn't know."


	18. A Little Backdrop On Deir Lives

**Chapter Eighteen: Twenty Eight Years**

1983 Day One:

Sebastian and I landed in the Land Without Magic, fire swirling around our feet. My brother looked over, reaching to cup my face. His eyes were soft and face covered in crinkles, mine surely suffered the same fate, "Kendra."

I smiled, touching his wrist with my wrinkled hand, "We're _old_."

"The spell did more damage than I expected," Seb agreed, "The curse has caused us to age."

"The spell must have backfired on us-how old are we?"

"We're-" Sebastian gasped, his body erupting into flames. I watched as his ashes fell around him, skin searing off of bone and a wild call scratching through the air. His body collapsed into the ground, a soft flame cascading after him.

When the fire stopped, a baby's wails pierced my ears. I swooped down, grabbing the child and nestling them into my arms, "I guess we've aged at least a century, you're in a new incarnation, aren't you?" I began to baby him, "Aren't you little Sebastian? Aren't ya?"

Sebastian drooled, blue eyes staring up at me. I took off my shawl and wrapped it around him and began to walk.

1983 Day Thirty:

Seb and I moved into apartment B21 in a little town in Maryland. I decided against staying near where the others lived in fear of being identified by Regina.

I was old and Seb was a child. We could not defend ourselves.

The little town was small enough that people often watched me take care of a child with worry and confusion (for our healths) but large enough that no one voiced anything. Sebastian was a very obedient child, sleeping softly in the night and causing me as little problems as often. His blue eyes stared at me all the time and at this point I could decipher every twitch on his face, knowing what he felt with everything I did.

The slobbering drool that his mouth oozed still amused me to no end.

1983 Day Three Hundred Fifty Two:

Sebastian was stumbling next to me, trying to walk. It was dark out and we had just gotten back from a nice dinner out for Sebastian's true birthday. Most Phoenixes were born during the winter or cold months, but we celebrated my birthdays in April and May, the month I was born and the month I transformed. "Did you like your dinner?"

"Yes!" he nodded. His legs weren't developed but his mouth and brain, like all Phoenixes during reincarnation, were overly developed. "I liked da poh-tate-ohs!" I smiled, rubbing his soft tuft of dark hair. I opened up the blue door to our little home. Softly, we entered.

There was clank of dishware; my heart stopped.

I picked up Sebastian and entered warily, summoning a flickering ball of flame. I couldn't do much in this form, but there was an intruder in the house and dammit, I was going to _protect_ my family! I inched closer.

I peered into the kitchen and little feet peeked out from under the tablecloth. It was a child. I sighed, turned on the light, and said, "I know you're under there, if you come out I won't hurt you." It took a few moments, but auburn hair peeked out, followed by blue eyes. He looked _familiar_.

…

…

…

He stared at me, frightened.

…

…

…

"_Pinocchio_?" I gasped. He twisted away, frowning. I stepped forward; he inched back. "Hey, hey, I'm not going to hurt you, okay? I'm Kendra. Do you remember me? I was that woman who played with fire?"

"The bird lady?" I nodded.

"Yeah, why don't you come closer, I'll make you something better to eat."

He nodded.

1984 Day Two Hundred Eighty:

"August, make sure Sebastian eats his vegetables, I'll just run to the store-I'll be back in a jiff."

"Okay, Kendra, don't break your hip!" I stuck out my tongue at the boy.

1985 Day Sixteen:

"Happy Birthday to youuuuuuu, happy birthday to youuuuuu!" I brought out the ice cream, placing it in front of the boy. The candles lit up the dark room.

"Hwappy buwwrthdway twuuu youuuu, Augwaaaaist!" Sebastian clapped along, rosy cheeks flushed. The eight year old smiled, excited.

"Yay!" I clapped, the bracelets on my wrists clanking, "Blow out the candles!"

I held up one of those crazy camera devices. The boy closed his eyes and blew, wishing upon the flames. The flash and click was loud in the room. Sebastian squealed, hands clapping vigorously. I smiled and reached under the table, pulling out the few presents we had gotten the boy.

We got him a rubik's cube, jenga, magic eight ball, a nintendo, and an easy bake oven! August was so happy, jumping up and down. I grinned and I pulled out the last present. "Now," I placated him; he sat down softly, entranced by my voice, "I want you to take good care of these, I got these specially made and I want you to fill them with your amazing adventures no matter how small, okay?" August nodded.

I handed over the stack of leather bound notebooks. His face was in awe.

1990 Day Seventy Three:

"'Gust?" I called. The thirteen year old ran into the room, a seven year old sprinting afterwards.

"Yeah Dra?"

"What's wrong?" Sebastian asked. His little hands reached for my face, dragging me down for an inspection. "Are you hurt? Is it time?"

"Time for what?"

"No, silly, but that _was_ what I wanted to talk to _August_ about."

"What's wrong?" I sat down in one of the chairs and gestured for him to do the same. Seb decided to rummage through the pantry.

"August," I started, "you know how Sebastian and I are different than you and the rest of our people, yes?"

"Yeah and?"

"Well, in a few years, probably one or two, I'm going to become young like Seb."

"Why?"

"Because my incarnation-this life-will end and I will be reborn-it's so that I can live _forever_."

"You can _do_ that?"

"Yes, I'll explain more on that later, but for now, I just wanted to tell you what you need to do when this happens. First you need to…"

1993 Day One:

August looked up from his desk, away from his homework. There was a crash downstairs in one of the bathrooms. August heard the startled shoving of chairs in Seb's room next door as he sprinted out and down the stairs. August, shocked, followed the brunette to their pseudo mother. Soft blubbering noises murmured past the closed bathroom door. Scorch marks peeked out from under the wood.

August pushed the wood open and found and explosion of black char covering the encased space. Little tendrils circled around a small pile of clothes where something crawled underneath. Seb leaned down, lifting the cloth. Green eyes stared up, wide and curious, with drool slipping out of her mouth.

She looked around and growing confused, began to cry. Seb cooed as August bundled her up in the old woman's clothes. They soothed the girl as she wiggled and cried. "She likes watching fire."

Gust turned to Seb, "What?"

"In all my incarnations, Kendra's always been soothed by watching the fire-here, let me show you." The boy turned away. Kendra's cries turned to wails. Sebastian turned on the stove and placed a large pot of water on top of it. August inched closer. As soon as Kendra's round eyes found the flames, her lips stopped wobbling and she began to sniff. "See?"

August nodded, rubbing the girl.

1993-1995:

Tears of frustration edged at August's eyes. He wiped them away. He was tired, Kendra was having nightmares, and the apartment was a mess. Sebastian and August had spent the last few years taking on odd jobs, making sure Kendra was healthy, trying to use as little of Kendra's money as possible, and keeping out of sight from social service's. Nights were gruesome and Sebastian did his best to help. Taking care of Kendra and doing as many small jobs he could do and making meals for the high schooler, middle schooler, and preschooler.

"Kendra," August pled, making sure the three year old was looking him in the eye. "You need to calm down and stop crying. It was just a nightmare-what was it about?"

"Peeeetttter."

"Who's Peter?"

"He's-he's-he's…" the girl sobbed and clenched her eyes shut, shaking her head no.

"Where's Sebastian," he muttered, looking around the apartment. He turned back to Kendra. "Hey, sweetie, Peter's not real, it's okay, it's ok-"

"No! NO! He's real! I _swear_! He's real! I promise!"

August pulled her in for a hug, rubbing her back, "Hey, hey, it's okay, just a nightmare. Don't be scared of them. _Nightmares_ aren't real, how about that? Just the nightmares, okay? Do you want some milk?"

"No."

"Tea?"

She nodded but she still looked around the apartment, still scared. August turned away, lighting the stove. Only a few more months, he thought, until I'm legal and then it'll be easier.

2002 Day Sixteen:

"I'm ten, I'm ten, I'm ten!" Kendra exclaimed. Sebastian, now nineteen, and August, now twenty four, smiled, taking her hands. They swung their arms as they walked around the park, "I'm ten, I'm ten, I'm teeeeeeennnn, I'm so _old_! Hey! Look! Ice cream, Gust, Seb, can we go get some?!" Seb chuckled, peeking at the money bearer.

"August?"

The man made a mock-reluctant noise, "Weeeelllll…I _guess_, I mean she's double digits and everything, so I _guess_ I could make an exception."

Kendra cheered, jumping up and down. "Yay! Yay! Yaaayy! You're the best, I love you both, this is the _best_ birthday I've ever had!"

The girl ran forward and Sebastian and August strolled lazily. The watched the red head's hair swish and her pale legs sprint. "How many?"

"This week? Sixteen."

"Yesterday?"

"Twice."

"God, how long has this been happening to her?"

"For a very long time."

2002 Day Forty Nine:

There was a shriek in the middle of the night and the sound of glass shattering. August's eyes snapped open. He lurched out of his bed and sprinted down the hall and down to the kitchen. He found the light on, the fridge open, and Kendra rocking back and forth on the ground, mumbling to herself. "Go away, go away, please, please, pleeeeaassse, go away, _please_!"

August looked around; there was nothing there. The man scooped the ten year old up in his arms, cradling her to his chest. "Hey, baby girl, come on, calm down."

"He's here, he's here, he's here," she cried, tears staining his shirt. "He won't go away August!" Sebastian's loud feet sounded as he ran to the room.

"Kendra!"

The girl shuddered. "Make him go away, Seb, Seb, Gust, please, please, please, he's so mean!"

Seb came over and rubbed her back. "Dra, he's not here."

"Yes he is!" she shrieked. "He's right there!" She looked up and pointed at one of the counters. Nothing was there.

"Kendra…nothing's…"

"Oh my god August," Sebastian whispered. The man looked over. There, on their counter was a vague shape, unclear, mostly mist, but there. "Is that?"

"Peter," she whimpered. The image disappeared. Kendra wailed hysterically.

2006 Day One Hundred Eleven:

"I hate you!" she yelled, throwing books at the two men.

"Kendra calm down," Seb soothed.

"No! Ugh, you two assholes are always up in my business! God, just go shove it up your-"

"That is _no_ way to talk to us young lady," August growled.

"Oh, cry me a river," she mocked, "You're just pathetic little fools-you were just a _puppet_! Hah! You're the most disgusting, worthless, atrocious little mongrels I've ever witnessed!"

"Kendra!" Sebastian roared, lunging for his sister. August dived for the redhead as well. Sebastian and him had just come home from their little oddball jobs to find the girl angry and temperamental, spouting vicious insults at them. "I've had enough!"

"No! I _hate_ you! You both are the most insufferable men I have ever known and you should go die in a hole!"

Sebastian growled and slapped a hand over her mouth. "Now, you listen here, and you listen good, missy, I _know_ what's happening. Don't succumb to your curse, Kendra. Don't you _dare_ to this to us. Don't ruin what you have, okay, if you can here me, _snap out of it_!"

The girl's face turned red and angry. Seb pinched her. She snarled.

"Kendra," August soothed, rubbing her arms. "Come on, please, come back to us, you've done this before. Come on, come back to us."

"Please," Sebastian whispered. The girl stopped struggling, her eyes blinking, the dark green turning light again. The clouds in her eyes cleared and her temperature cooled. She looked confused. They removed their hand on her.

"Sebastian? August? Wha…what happened?"

They pulled her up, squishing her into a hug. "It's okay, it's okay, doesn't matter anymore."

2008 Day One Hundred Fifty Four:

"Are you sure you want to go?" Kendra asked, peering up at August. She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. August heaved his backpack on his shoulders.

"I told you, Kendra, I want to see the _world_!"

She sighed, wiping her tears, "Okay, but don't get lost. And don't forget to write. And don't forget your passports and don't forget-"

"Kendra," Sebastian interrupted, the twenty five year old giving the sixteen year old a look.

"Okay, okay, I just don't want for him to have any problems."

August chuckled, "You're like my mom again."

She laughed, "I'll always be your mom, August."

Seb shook his head. He handed the man a new journal. "So you could write about your journeys."

"Don't forget to write in all the saucy details," Kendra winked. He rolled his eyes.

"Okay, _Mom_."

She nodded, standing proud. In the distance the call for his flight loomed. "Okay, now shoo, I'll text you later!" The two dragged him in for a hug.

"Love you," the three echoed back and forth.

"Come back."

"I will."

2010 Day Three Hundred Twenty One:

"I'm thinking StoryBrooke," I told the two as we ate in a little cafe in Philadelphia.

Sebastian sat forward in his seat, "You mean…"

"Yeah, I want to meet the Savior and the Truest Believer and we need to break this curse and August's getting worse and I want to see Snow and you want to see Red and I really want to open up the tea shop and-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, _Kendra_, we'll go, it's gonna take some time to set up all the assets and everything, but yeah, sure. Let's go to StoryBrooke!"

Kendra smiled, cheering loudly. The other patrons stared at them, but the Phoenixes and the Wooden Boy didn't care, happy for their new developments.

2010 Day Three Hundred Thirty:

"Kendra," August greeted as she came down the hall in their loft to the kitchen. They moved in years ago. "Come sit, you want a sandwich?"

"Sure, can you put on the kettle?"

"Of course," he nodded, switching it on. He continued to make some ham sandwiches. They were silent. "So…" he looked over, her eyebrow raised. "How many?"

"Surprisingly, only twice this week."

"Really?"

"Yeah, they've been pretty distant. I don't know, maybe something's happening with the curse."

August nodded.

"So what are your plans? When we're down there?"

August laughed, bringing over their sandwiches and drinks, and sitting down at the table. "So, I'm thinking that I become _really mysterious_, that way, Emma and the others will be drawn to me and I'll be very interesting and stuff."

Kendra chuckled for a moment before her face turned serious again. "And your father? Geppetto?"

He grew silent. "I don't know. I don't think I'll see him."

Kendra frowned.

**Chapter Eighteen: Twenty Eight Years**

1983 Day One:

Sebastian and I landed in the Land Without Magic, fire swirling around our feet. My brother looked over, reaching to cup my face. His eyes were soft and face covered in crinkles, mine surely suffered the same fate, "Kendra."

I smiled, touching his wrist with my wrinkled hand, "We're _old_."

"The spell did more damage than I expected," Seb agreed, "The curse has caused us to age."

"The spell must have backfired on us-how old are we?"

"We're-" Sebastian gasped, his body erupting into flames. I watched as his ashes fell around him, skin searing off of bone and a wild call scratching through the air. His body collapsed into the ground, a soft flame cascading after him.

When the fire stopped, a baby's wails pierced my ears. I swooped down, grabbing the child and nestling them into my arms, "I guess we've aged at least a century, you're in a new incarnation, aren't you?" I began to baby him, "Aren't you little Sebastian? Aren't ya?"

Sebastian drooled, blue eyes staring up at me. I took off my shawl and wrapped it around him and began to walk.

1983 Day Thirty:

Seb and I moved into apartment B21 in a little town in Maryland. I decided against staying near where the others lived in fear of being identified by Regina.

I was old and Seb was a child. We could not defend ourselves.

The little town was small enough that people often watched me take care of a child with worry and confusion (for our healths) but large enough that no one voiced anything. Sebastian was a very obedient child, sleeping softly in the night and causing me as little problems as often. His blue eyes stared at me all the time and at this point I could decipher every twitch on his face, knowing what he felt with everything I did.

The slobbering drool that his mouth oozed still amused me to no end.

1983 Day Three Hundred Fifty Two:

Sebastian was stumbling next to me, trying to walk. It was dark out and we had just gotten back from a nice dinner out for Sebastian's true birthday. Most Phoenixes were born during the winter or cold months, but we celebrated my birthdays in April and May, the month I was born and the month I transformed. "Did you like your dinner?"

"Yes!" he nodded. His legs weren't developed but his mouth and brain, like all Phoenixes during reincarnation, were overly developed. "I liked da poh-tate-ohs!" I smiled, rubbing his soft tuft of dark hair. I opened up the blue door to our little home. Softly, we entered.

There was clank of dishware; my heart stopped.

I picked up Sebastian and entered warily, summoning a flickering ball of flame. I couldn't do much in this form, but there was an intruder in the house and dammit, I was going to _protect_ my family! I inched closer.

I peered into the kitchen and little feet peeked out from under the tablecloth. It was a child. I sighed, turned on the light, and said, "I know you're under there, if you come out I won't hurt you." It took a few moments, but auburn hair peeked out, followed by blue eyes. He looked _familiar_.

…

…

…

He stared at me, frightened.

…

…

…

"_Pinocchio_?" I gasped. He twisted away, frowning. I stepped forward; he inched back. "Hey, hey, I'm not going to hurt you, okay? I'm Kendra. Do you remember me? I was that woman who played with fire?"

"The bird lady?" I nodded.

"Yeah, why don't you come closer, I'll make you something better to eat."

He nodded.

1984 Day Two Hundred Eighty:

"August, make sure Sebastian eats his vegetables, I'll just run to the store-I'll be back in a jiff."

"Okay, Kendra, don't break your hip!" I stuck out my tongue at the boy.

1985 Day Sixteen:

"Happy Birthday to youuuuuuu, happy birthday to youuuuuu!" I brought out the ice cream, placing it in front of the boy. The candles lit up the dark room.

"Hwappy buwwrthdway twuuu youuuu, Augwaaaaist!" Sebastian clapped along, rosy cheeks flushed. The eight year old smiled, excited.

"Yay!" I clapped, the bracelets on my wrists clanking, "Blow out the candles!"

I held up one of those crazy camera devices. The boy closed his eyes and blew, wishing upon the flames. The flash and click was loud in the room. Sebastian squealed, hands clapping vigorously. I smiled and reached under the table, pulling out the few presents we had gotten the boy.

We got him a rubik's cube, jenga, magic eight ball, a nintendo, and an easy bake oven! August was so happy, jumping up and down. I grinned and I pulled out the last present. "Now," I placated him; he sat down softly, entranced by my voice, "I want you to take good care of these, I got these specially made and I want you to fill them with your amazing adventures no matter how small, okay?" August nodded.

I handed over the stack of leather bound notebooks. His face was in awe.

1990 Day Seventy Three:

"'Gust?" I called. The thirteen year old ran into the room, a seven year old sprinting afterwards.

"Yeah Dra?"

"What's wrong?" Sebastian asked. His little hands reached for my face, dragging me down for an inspection. "Are you hurt? Is it time?"

"Time for what?"

"No, silly, but that _was_ what I wanted to talk to _August_ about."

"What's wrong?" I sat down in one of the chairs and gestured for him to do the same. Seb decided to rummage through the pantry.

"August," I started, "you know how Sebastian and I are different than you and the rest of our people, yes?"

"Yeah and?"

"Well, in a few years, probably one or two, I'm going to become young like Seb."

"Why?"

"Because my incarnation-this life-will end and I will be reborn-it's so that I can live _forever_."

"You can _do_ that?"

"Yes, I'll explain more on that later, but for now, I just wanted to tell you what you need to do when this happens. First you need to…"

1993 Day One:

August looked up from his desk, away from his homework. There was a crash downstairs in one of the bathrooms. August heard the startled shoving of chairs in Seb's room next door as he sprinted out and down the stairs. August, shocked, followed the brunette to their pseudo mother. Soft blubbering noises murmured past the closed bathroom door. Scorch marks peeked out from under the wood.

August pushed the wood open and found and explosion of black char covering the encased space. Little tendrils circled around a small pile of clothes where something crawled underneath. Seb leaned down, lifting the cloth. Green eyes stared up, wide and curious, with drool slipping out of her mouth.

She looked around and growing confused, began to cry. Seb cooed as August bundled her up in the old woman's clothes. They soothed the girl as she wiggled and cried. "She likes watching fire."

Gust turned to Seb, "What?"

"In all my incarnations, Kendra's always been soothed by watching the fire-here, let me show you." The boy turned away. Kendra's cries turned to wails. Sebastian turned on the stove and placed a large pot of water on top of it. August inched closer. As soon as Kendra's round eyes found the flames, her lips stopped wobbling and she began to sniff. "See?"

August nodded, rubbing the girl.

1993-1995:

Tears of frustration edged at August's eyes. He wiped them away. He was tired, Kendra was having nightmares, and the apartment was a mess. Sebastian and August had spent the last few years taking on odd jobs, making sure Kendra was healthy, trying to use as little of Kendra's money as possible, and keeping out of sight from social service's. Nights were gruesome and Sebastian did his best to help. Taking care of Kendra and doing as many small jobs he could do and making meals for the high schooler, middle schooler, and preschooler.

"Kendra," August pled, making sure the three year old was looking him in the eye. "You need to calm down and stop crying. It was just a nightmare-what was it about?"

"Peeeetttter."

"Who's Peter?"

"He's-he's-he's…" the girl sobbed and clenched her eyes shut, shaking her head no.

"Where's Sebastian," he muttered, looking around the apartment. He turned back to Kendra. "Hey, sweetie, Peter's not real, it's okay, it's ok-"

"No! NO! He's real! I _swear_! He's real! I promise!"

August pulled her in for a hug, rubbing her back, "Hey, hey, it's okay, just a nightmare. Don't be scared of them. _Nightmares_ aren't real, how about that? Just the nightmares, okay? Do you want some milk?"

"No."

"Tea?"

She nodded but she still looked around the apartment, still scared. August turned away, lighting the stove. Only a few more months, he thought, until I'm legal and then it'll be easier.

2002 Day Sixteen:

"I'm ten, I'm ten, I'm ten!" Kendra exclaimed. Sebastian, now nineteen, and August, now twenty four, smiled, taking her hands. They swung their arms as they walked around the park, "I'm ten, I'm ten, I'm teeeeeeennnn, I'm so _old_! Hey! Look! Ice cream, Gust, Seb, can we go get some?!" Seb chuckled, peeking at the money bearer.

"August?"

The man made a mock-reluctant noise, "Weeeelllll…I _guess_, I mean she's double digits and everything, so I _guess_ I could make an exception."

Kendra cheered, jumping up and down. "Yay! Yay! Yaaayy! You're the best, I love you both, this is the _best_ birthday I've ever had!"

The girl ran forward and Sebastian and August strolled lazily. The watched the red head's hair swish and her pale legs sprint. "How many?"

"This week? Sixteen."

"Yesterday?"

"Twice."

"God, how long has this been happening to her?"

"For a very long time."

2002 Day Forty Nine:

There was a shriek in the middle of the night and the sound of glass shattering. August's eyes snapped open. He lurched out of his bed and sprinted down the hall and down to the kitchen. He found the light on, the fridge open, and Kendra rocking back and forth on the ground, mumbling to herself. "Go away, go away, please, please, pleeeeaassse, go away, _please_!"

August looked around; there was nothing there. The man scooped the ten year old up in his arms, cradling her to his chest. "Hey, baby girl, come on, calm down."

"He's here, he's here, he's here," she cried, tears staining his shirt. "He won't go away August!" Sebastian's loud feet sounded as he ran to the room.

"Kendra!"

The girl shuddered. "Make him go away, Seb, Seb, Gust, please, please, please, he's so mean!"

Seb came over and rubbed her back. "Dra, he's not here."

"Yes he is!" she shrieked. "He's right there!" She looked up and pointed at one of the counters. Nothing was there.

"Kendra…nothing's…"

"Oh my god August," Sebastian whispered. The man looked over. There, on their counter was a vague shape, unclear, mostly mist, but there. "Is that?"

"Peter," she whimpered. The image disappeared. Kendra wailed hysterically.

2006 Day One Hundred Eleven:

"I hate you!" she yelled, throwing books at the two men.

"Kendra calm down," Seb soothed.

"No! Ugh, you two assholes are always up in my business! God, just go shove it up your-"

"That is _no_ way to talk to us young lady," August growled.

"Oh, cry me a river," she mocked, "You're just pathetic little fools-you were just a _puppet_! Hah! You're the most disgusting, worthless, atrocious little mongrels I've ever witnessed!"

"Kendra!" Sebastian roared, lunging for his sister. August dived for the redhead as well. Sebastian and him had just come home from their little oddball jobs to find the girl angry and temperamental, spouting vicious insults at them. "I've had enough!"

"No! I _hate_ you! You both are the most insufferable men I have ever known and you should go die in a hole!"

Sebastian growled and slapped a hand over her mouth. "Now, you listen here, and you listen good, missy, I _know_ what's happening. Don't succumb to your curse, Kendra. Don't you _dare_ to this to us. Don't ruin what you have, okay, if you can here me, _snap out of it_!"

The girl's face turned red and angry. Seb pinched her. She snarled.

"Kendra," August soothed, rubbing her arms. "Come on, please, come back to us, you've done this before. Come on, come back to us."

"Please," Sebastian whispered. The girl stopped struggling, her eyes blinking, the dark green turning light again. The clouds in her eyes cleared and her temperature cooled. She looked confused. They removed their hand on her.

"Sebastian? August? Wha…what happened?"

They pulled her up, squishing her into a hug. "It's okay, it's okay, doesn't matter anymore."

2008 Day One Hundred Fifty Four:

"Are you sure you want to go?" Kendra asked, peering up at August. She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. August heaved his backpack on his shoulders.

"I told you, Kendra, I want to see the _world_!"

She sighed, wiping her tears, "Okay, but don't get lost. And don't forget to write. And don't forget your passports and don't forget-"

"Kendra," Sebastian interrupted, the twenty five year old giving the sixteen year old a look.

"Okay, okay, I just don't want for him to have any problems."

August chuckled, "You're like my mom again."

She laughed, "I'll always be your mom, August."

Seb shook his head. He handed the man a new journal. "So you could write about your journeys."

"Don't forget to write in all the saucy details," Kendra winked. He rolled his eyes.

"Okay, _Mom_."

She nodded, standing proud. In the distance the call for his flight loomed. "Okay, now shoo, I'll text you later!" The two dragged him in for a hug.

"Love you," the three echoed back and forth.

"Come back."

"I will."

2010 Day Three Hundred Twenty One:

"I'm thinking StoryBrooke," I told the two as we ate in a little cafe in Philadelphia.

Sebastian sat forward in his seat, "You mean…"

"Yeah, I want to meet the Savior and the Truest Believer and we need to break this curse and August's getting worse and I want to see Snow and you want to see Red and I really want to open up the tea shop and-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, _Kendra_, we'll go, it's gonna take some time to set up all the assets and everything, but yeah, sure. Let's go to StoryBrooke!"

Kendra smiled, cheering loudly. The other patrons stared at them, but the Phoenixes and the Wooden Boy didn't care, happy for their new developments.

2010 Day Three Hundred Thirty:

"Kendra," August greeted as she came down the hall in their loft to the kitchen. They moved in years ago. "Come sit, you want a sandwich?"

"Sure, can you put on the kettle?"

"Of course," he nodded, switching it on. He continued to make some ham sandwiches. They were silent. "So…" he looked over, her eyebrow raised. "How many?"

"Surprisingly, only twice this week."

"Really?"

"Yeah, they've been pretty distant. I don't know, maybe something's happening with the curse."

August nodded.

"So what are your plans? When we're down there?"

August laughed, bringing over their sandwiches and drinks, and sitting down at the table. "So, I'm thinking that I become _really mysterious_, that way, Emma and the others will be drawn to me and I'll be very interesting and stuff."

Kendra chuckled for a moment before her face turned serious again. "And your father? Geppetto?"

He grew silent. "I don't know. I don't think I'll see him."

Kendra frowned.


	19. Hallucination Bitch

**Chapter Nineteen: Mandrake Tea**

_My eyes blinked open, the light from the windows seeped in. I happily got up from my bed and got ready for my day in a nice green dress. I smiled, going downstairs and into the tea shop. I warmed the teapots and started up the ovens. I twirled across the room, spinning and dancing, my fingers trailing across ever red well and every book on the shelves. It was amazing. _

_Today I felt so free and joyful, not a thing was wrong. I poured myself a cup of lemon tea and grinned, jittery to just dance again and again and __**again**__! Nothing could ruin this moment!_

_**REALITY:**_

Kendra glared moodily at the son and father at the helm of the boat. "Poser," she mumbled, staring Baelfire. "You're not important to him, you never _will_ be," she spat. The girl turned away from the pair, turning her dark gaze to sky and seas. "Stupid mortals, all of them. Rediculous."

When they landed in the town. Kendra strutted in front of the rest of them, head held high and mighty. "Are you alright?" Snow, the foolish True Lover called.

"Yeah. Yep. We're alright," Emma called.

"I, uh, drove a ship," Henry announced; Kendra wanted to groan.

"Did you now?" Prince Charming helped Peter Pan's grandson carry the Dark One.

"Yeah, my dad showed me how." Kendra snorted. Sebastian and Ruby looked over at her.

Seb reached towards her, but, she turned away from him, "Are you okay? Everything alright?"

"Everything's just _peachy_!"

"Kendra?" Ruby looked worried, touching her shoulder. The woman flinched and hissed at the werewolf.

"Get your dog paws off of me," she growled. She went over to the conversations.

"She needs to be stopped. She needs to be _killed_."

"I agree," Kendra grinned, golden eyes shining, dipped red around the edges. Seb looked worriedly over at Ruby.

"This is _our_ family. We are going to protect it."

"Of course we will, but what you're talking about goes beyond that."

"Does it?"

"I think it's a splendid idea," Kendra's red lips were like poison. "That wench deserves it."

"Because she is the reason you've never met my mother."

"I know. I know what happened to Queen Eva, and I have _zero_ problem with Cora dying for it, but not by your hand and not out of vengeance."

"Why?"

"Because you wouldn't be able to live with yourself. You have the purest heart of anyone I have ever known. It's who you are, and that's who you're gonna stay."

"Then I'll do it," the Phoenix volunteered. Charming and Snow stared at her.

"What? Why!"

"_I_ don't have a pure heart," the girl stepped closer, head tilting, mocking them with her voice and eyes, "I _could_ live with myself. I _want_ to do it."

"But!" Snow's voice was high and worried, "Kendra! What's happening-you've never wanted to do something like this before. You have no reason to!"

"You're right, I don't, which makes it _perfect_. I just want to rip her-"

"Kendra!" Sebastian gasped, pulling the redhead away from the scared couple. "Kendra, what has gotten into you!"

"Nothing!" she jerked out of his arms and stomped over to Henry, gripping his hand tightly. He winced but didn't complain at the angry woman. The _amazing_ group decided to go back to Gold's shop where the magic is.

"Let me guess. I get to go with Ruby, Kendra, and Sebastian," the little boy guessed.

"You got it, kid," Emma smiled.

"We'll keep him out of the crossfire."

"Thank you."

"Don't look so worried. You'll stop Cora. You won't let her get away." Henry nodded.

"Actually," Kendra looked away from the boy and the other two, "I'd prefer to go with."

"Oh," Emma looked shock. She looked to Mary Margaret. "Uh, sure."

"Cool." Kendra walked away, not bothering to look back.

Sebastian looked worried.

_**IN KENDRA'S HEAD:**_

"Hello Sebastian," I greeted, passing a warm mug of peppermint tea to him. "And hello, Red," I passed her a coffee. "Would you like some pancakes?"

"That would be lovely."

"Hey, guys," Jefferson, entered the shop.

"Hey, Hatter! Would you like a turnover?"

"I would love one," he grinned, sitting down. Slowly, all my favorite customers began to fill the shop. I happily munched on a cupcake as I fed and gave them drinks. Life was good, life was sweet, life was no better than the amazing chocolatey goodness I ate.

_**REALITY:**_

They sat Mr. Gold down on a cot in his shop. Kendra sniffed haughtily and began to touch all of the objects on display. "Emma, did you find it?"

Emma presented a jar. "Yeah. There's nothing in it." Kendra rolled her eyes at the Savior's stupidity. She rocked the jar and there was a tinkle in it. "What the hell?"

"Invisible chalk."

"Classic."

"Use it in the front doorway. Draw a line. The rest of you, you might wanna prepare for battle." Kendra beamed, presenting her talon-like-fingernails. They glinted in the light and her eyes bleached red. She followed them out to the main room. Emma got on her knees and began to draw.

"You missed a spot," Baelfire volunteered with a grin.

Emma was not amused. "You're hilarious."

"Just like your grandfather," Kendra muttered, fingering a dagger.

"I didn't know you were magical."

"Oh, my. Are you getting judgey about this?"

Kendra turned to him, draping herself across his body. She pouted. "You don't like magic?" Baelfire frowned and Kendra pushed herself away, cackling as she danced over to Charming.

"We're all clear outside," he announced. He looked at the awkward tension. "Everything okay?"

Kendra snorted and moved to the back.

"You're not getting any better, are you?"

"The candle can save me. There's nothing else."

"Debatable," Kendra spoke up. She went over to a chair. "There's folklore that Phoenix tears can heal anything, but they have to be true and it's never been proven before. Plus, sorry, _Rumpelstiltskin_, I'm not crying over you." Rumple glared at her; she raised her brow. Snow turned back to him.

"I wouldn't use this to save my own mother what makes you think I'd use it for you?"

"Cry me a river."

"Because you're all grown up now. And for once, our interests are aligned."

"She dies instead of you."

"I know you can do this. I know you _wanna _do this."

"_The whore's prissy about this kind of thing_," the Phoenix thought, inspecting her nails.

"There's no coming back from murder."

"And there's no coming back from death either," he glanced at Kendra; she snarled, "and that's what will happen to your loved ones."

"Even if I were to do this…the candle will only work if you whisper the victim's name over them."

"The heart will do."

"Cora's heart…" Snow nodded, "it's not in her body."

"Use the candle, curse the heart, and then…here comes the tricky part."

"_That's_ not the tricky part?"

"Of course not," Kendra drawled. "The tricky part is shoving the black heart back into the bitch's body."

"She will die," Rumplestiltskin added. "And I will live."

"There's another way."

Kendra rolled her eyes. "No there isn't."

"I get Cora's heart, I control her and make her do the right thing, and I let you die." Mr. Gold chuckled. "Takes care of two evils at once."

"I'm just imagining poor Henry's face when he finds out that you killed his grandpa."

"Shots fired," the girl whistled. Emma came into the room.

"I drew the invisible line…I think. What now? You cast a protection spell?"

"No, no. You're gonna do that for me. I'm relying on you."

"I can't cast a spell. I can spell 'spell'. What about Kendra?" the blonde looked over. The other girl shook her head.

"Nah, I'd rather not."

"Bu…"

"You can," Rumple turned to Emma. "It's in you."

"How? Here? Like, from my brain?"

"Just try." Emma sighed, closing her eyes. Even Kendra could hear her thoughts loud in the room. "Stop thinking! Conjuring magic is not an intellectual endeavor. It's emotion. You must ask yourself, 'Why am I doing this? Who am I protecting?' Feel it." Emma turned away. A little rustle of magic tingled at the edge of Kendra's senses, wrapping her inside a cage of protection. "Oh, yeah. You feel it?"

"Yeah. Think I did."

"Good girl. Very good girl."

"Kinky," Kendra smirked, ruining the moment.

_**IN KENDRA'S HEAD:**_

"Hook!" I cried, smiling happily as he came bounding in. The man grinned, smirking as he strutted forward.

"Kendra!" Hook greeted, leaning against the counters. "You look lovely today, lass."

"Thank you," I twirled. Henry came running around the counter, wrapping his arms around my waist.

"Kendra! Kendra!"

"Hi, Henry!" I leaned down, smoothing his hair. "You wanna cupcake?" He nodded vigorously. I handed him a chocolate caramel one and then passed a scone to Killian. "How do you do?"

"Lovely," the man grinned, "as is the weather, is it not?"

"The whole day itself is wonderful! All of my favorite people are here today! Look!" I pointed at Hatter and August, playing a game of cards, at Seb and Red, giggling over tea, at Snow and Charming, sharing soft kisses in the corners, at Soraya and her love, reading a book with their hands linked, and all of the other patrons, buzzing and smiling. "It's just been the most amazing day today!"

Hook laughed! "Indeed! Do you have anything I could give to Miss Swan?"

"Hmm," I tapped my chin before straightening up with an idea, "I know!" I reached down and pulled out a little cupcake. "It looks plain, but it's vanilla and caramel and there's bits of strawberry in there too." Hook beamed, eager to pay for a cupcake to give to Miss Swan. "Enjoy!"

"Thanks!"

"You're the best!" Henry exclaimed, nuzzling my side once more. I sighed, content.

_**REALITY:**_

She gripped a knife in her hand. It was sharp and jagged, the hilt curved in her grip. The dark metal glinted in the light and mirrored her reflection, a meliscious stretch of lips and curdling orange eyes, simmering red. The edges of her teeth were more pointed and the skin covering her limbs itched and crawled, edging to turn into feathers and fire.

The shop rumbled and the others came to the front, readying themselves with their weapons. The door flew open, revealing Regina and Cora. "Regina," Emma warned, "think about what you're doing."

"Don't talk to me."

Kendra looked over and saw Snow creep out of the battle. She almost hissed at the coward. A flame erupted from Regina's hands and Charming deflected it with his sword. Regina proceeded to throw him out of the door. "David!" The door slammed shut. Emma was thrown back and Baelfire lunged forward-just missing his target, who left the dagger on the floor.

Regina held Emma by her throat but Emma quickly maneuvered them so that she held Regina by the throat with a knife. Neal and Cora had a face off over who was going to get the Dark One's Dagger. "What's it going to be?"

"Mother!"

"Choose wisely." Before Cora could make her decision, Kendra lunged for it, a mess of red feathers trailing. But, Cora being the wench she was, summoned the dagger at the same time, slashing Kendra's wings up with the blade. Kendra shrieked, her voice ringing shrill in their ears. The Phoenix flew up-to the best of her ability-slashed at Cora's shoulder and hurled herself out of the window and out of the shop.

She was going to go torment Snow White.

-/TeaShop/-

She reached her just as she blew out the candles. Kendra landed with human feet and human hands and human legs and arms. Everything was so _human_. Her eyes were now glazed red and she slung her hair up into a ponytail. "You did it?" Snow nodded; Kendra rolled her eyes at the cry baby. She touched her arm where the blade has cut. The wound seeped red ooze but it was healing quickly, a scar not even there to show where she was cut. "Let's get out of here." Snow nodded and grabbed the box with Cora's heart lying within. They walked down the catacombs and ran into Regina at entrance. "Hey bitch," Kendra greeted, nodding at the other woman.

"You have no right to be here." She looked down at the box. "And you have no right to _that_."

"I was going to give it to you." Kendra tensed at the soft lies pouring out of Snow White's mouth.

"What?"

"She can't love you, you know. She doesn't have her heart," pixie cut reasoned. "With it, maybe she can." Kendra caught on. She slinked over to Regina and added.

"That's why you've never felt she loved you." Before trailing back to Snow.

"She doesn't have her heart. But I do."

"You're doing this for me?"

"Think about it. What would happen if Cora had her heart back? Back _inside_ her?"

"She'd be more sensitive," Kendra whispered.

"She told me she took it out to protect herself."

"And did it work? The person she was before-do you think that person survived?" Snow shook her head. "She can't love. So she can't love _you_." Regina shook her head.

"She always wanted the best for me. That's love."

"Imagine real love. You'd have a mother and a start on making a family. Henry could be a part of."

"Think of Henry," Kendra nodded, "think of his happiness."

"Or you could have her be the Dark One." Snow presented the box and Kendra had to hide her smile. "The choice is yours."

-/TeaShop/-

Snow sat on the steps of the crypt, crying. "Don't be such a baby about it."

"Please," she looked up at Kendra, eyes red and puffy, "shut up, Kendra."

"Fine, be that way, but it was _your_ choice and you have to stick with it." The girl turned away then, leaping up in the air, and flying away.

_**IN KENDRA'S HEAD:**_

A man with light skin entered the shop doors. I looked up, mouth parting, as the man swaggered to the front. He wore black jeans and a dark green v-neck, a leather jacket hanging off of him. His converse were smooth across the wooden floor and his shades perched atop his head glinted. Behind him, another figure strided over to the bookcases, flickering through each one. The first male, the one with light brown hair-not the blonde by the book case-reached the counter. I stared as he pulled my chin forward across the counter and planted his lips warmly on mine.

He tasted like cinnamon.

The teen pulled back, licked his lips, and smirked, "Hello, love." Peter's voice was just as I remembered, smooth and thick.

"You…" there was a crackling in the distance. I looked around, sudden awareness of everything around me. I looked back at Peter, my face drooping. He frowned, confused. "You're not real."

Everything went black.

_**REALITY:**_

Kendra stalked out of the tea shop, Seb trailing angrily behind her. "Kendra! Get back in here this instant!"

"Make me!" she growled.

"Kendra!" She didn't answer. "_Kendra!_ KENDRA! _KENDRA! _Get your ass back inside this _instant_!"

She turned around, flipped him the bird, and continued stalking away. Sebastian watched her go, blue eyes dripping gold hurt. His Mate's fingers laced with his. "It's going to be alright, she'll get out of this funk eventually."

"I…I'm not so sure."

-/TeaShop/-

Kendra was a nuisance:

She stomped everywhere she went.

She was ignoring her phone.

She glared at everyone.

She was ignoring Henry's calls.

She kicked everything that crossed her path, including people.

She was ignoring Sebastian's calls.

She threw fire at random plants.

She drew all over the windows in sharpie.

She was ignoring Henry's calls.

She was ignoring Henry's calls.

Kendra was being a bitch. She snarled a pedestrians and creeped out children with her glares. She took food from people and pickpocketed old ladies. She even tripped an older gentlemen and cackled.

Henry, on the other hand, was scared:

He wasn't ever told anything.

His family was fraying at the seams.

He couldn't contact Kendra.

His mom was evil and was trying to use a love potion on him.

His other mom was trying to kill his mom.

His not-dead father was trying to cheer him up.

He couldn't contact Kendra.

He was beginning to hate magic.

He couldn't contact Kendra.

He couldn't contact Kendra.

Henry was having an awful day. Kendra was being a bitch. Everything was turning foul and awful. StoryBrooke was glooming and there was a battle about to spark.

Sebastian was worried:

His sister was being mean and rude.

His Mate was off on a search party.

The Truest Believer was missing.

-/TeaShop/-

Kendra found Henry at the well. She chuckled at him. "What are _you_ doing with _that_?" her voice was snide.

"Kendra! Where've you been? Why haven't you been returning my calls?"

She shrugged, "I was busy. Now, what is a little boy doing with dynamite?"

"I'm getting rid of magic."

Kendra guffawed, "Hah! Good luck with _that one_. All you're gonna get is your eyebrows blown off."

"No!" he shook his head, "No, I'm going to do it!  
"No, you're not."

"Yes, I am!"

"No, you really aren't you idiot."

His face grew red. "Yes, I will! And then everything is going to fixed!"

"Nothing will be fixed!" Kendra shouted. "_Nothing_, Henry, you hear me? Can you understand that in your thick and heavy skull? _You _can't solve anything!" His lip wobbled. With shaking fingers he lit the match and brought it up to the stack of dynamite.

"Henry?" Regina called. Henry looked over. "What are you doing?"

"I'm getting rid of magic. It-it's ruining everything, and you can't stop me."

"All that's gonna do is get yourself killed."

"See!" Kendra nodded enthusiastically. "Don't be an idiot!"

"You just say that because you need magic so you can cast that curse on me."

Kendra's brow raised. "_You_ need to cast a curse just so he can love you?" she mocked, "You are the saddest creature I have _ever_ met." Regina glared and Henry lit his match. Purple smoke wisped around it, taking it away.

"I can't lose you, Henry. You mean too much to me." She approached the boy.

"Then don't cast the curse. Don't kill Mary Margaret."

"Henry, she has to pay."

"The curse-it won't make me love you for real. It'll be fake."

"But it will be something. I know it's hard for you to understand right now, but you'll see. We can be happy. We can have everything." Kendra chortled.

"You are such a dunce."

"Not like this."

"Hey, Regina! Get away from my son!"

"Oh look, there's the Saviour, come to _save_ us," Kendra mocked.

"He's not yours. He's mine. And after I cast this, you'll never see him again."

"That's never gonna happen," Charming shook his head.

"You wanna kill Mary Margaret, you're gonna have to go through us."

"Ok."

Charming drew his gun and Regina summoned a ball of flame. Henry jumped in the middle. "Stop!"

"Henry, get out of the way!"

"Not until someone helps me destroy magic!"

"You can't destroy magic!" Kendra roared. Her eyes blazed red as she stalked between the two parties and towards the boy. "You could never destroy magic! You're just a kid!" she backed him up to a tree, jabbing him in the chest, "You can't do _anything_! You're stuck here in this screwed up world with your screwed up family and you can't do shit about it, Henry!" His lip wobbled and tears welled up in his eyes. "You have _no_ power to control what's around you! Accept that and _move on_." She leaned in close, whispered in his ear. "You should just give up and di-"

"KENDRA!" Sebastian's cry echoed through the forest. She looked up just as he pushed her to the ground like a comet. He unfurled back into his human form, flames licking at the ground.

"GET OFF OF ME!"

"NO!" Behind them, Regina and Emma grabbed Henry, pulling him safely away from Kendra. "You need to _snap _out of it!"

"I'm an adult! You can't tell me what to do!"

"You are _not_ an adult-you're not even _Kendra_! You're just a curse entwined with her soul and you need to _stop_!"

Kendra's eyes turned pitch black, inky veins spreading under her eyes. "You can't stop me," she hissed. "I'm meant to destroy everything _she_ has after what she did to me-you'll never get her back. You can't-"

"Do you remember Romulus?"

Kendra stopped.

"Do you remember peaches by the old willow and your mother baking bread on Sundays as you watched?"

She struggled against him.

"Do you remember Felix? Kendra, answer me, do you remember Felix and watching the sunset? Do you remember him?"

"Stop! Stop!"

"How about August? Remember watching him grow up? Reading him stories of Artemis and the Odyssey? Do you remember? Him doing the same when you were a girl? Come on, Kendra, come back to us, please, Kendra."

"Never!" she cried, shaking.

"Remember the Shadows, how they'd creep in your vision and how they used to make you choke-who held you? Tell me, Kendra, who held you those nights?"

"I-" her eyes flashed golden, "-Sebast-No!"

"Come on, come back to us, you've got to fix this, Dra, you've got to say sorry to Henry-remember, remember Killian and your drinking contests. Come on, come home-how about, how about," the black in her eyes began to fade, "how about Peter?"

Black smoke spouted from her mouth, black ash pooling in the air, spreading everywhere in a fog. Kendra grew limp, her eyes rolled back into her skull. She cried out though, loud and shrill. Henry fell to the ground, clutching his ears.

_**IN KENDRA'S HEAD:**_

"I knew you'd be back." My eyes opened. I looked up, dark black ones piercing back at me. I sat up. I gasped. "I always find you."

"Oh my god-please don't-"

"Did I tell you to speak?" he growled, slapping a hand over my mouth. He leaned in close, voice raspy and dark, "I didn't think so."

Tears welled up in my eyes.

"Now that we're alone," he fingered a lock of my hair-it made me cold, "I thought I'd let you know."

I made a questioning noise.

He bit my ear. Oh god, I felt so uncomfortable. "I never loved you. You'll see, you didn't destroy me-you're not the reason why I became so bad. _I _did that and _you_ just stopped me from being my true self."

"Peter-"

"_Don't_ call me that, whore, you mean nothing to me."

He grabbed my neck and snapped.


	20. The Feels I Feel

**Chapter Twenty: Tears In My Drink**

I laid curled up in a ball, my hair covering my face. I felt cold and hollow. Sebastian explained to me what had happened. I helped the murder of Cora Mills, goaded everyone into doing awful things, I played on Snow's vulnerability, and…and I yelled at Henry. I was so, so _cruel_ to him. A voice laughed from across the room. I whimpered, wishing Sebastian was here but also that he wasn't. I had never let him see the aftereffects of the curse, the insomnia, the choking breath escaping my lungs, the hallucinations trailing me for days, and the black tears that would escape my eyes, inky ash spreading everywhere.

"I've missed this," the Shadow grinned. I kept my eyes on the floor. "Being here, keeping you up at night, giving you gifts of wisdom," he paused, tapping his chin, "It's a lot like _love_ don't you think?"

I didn't answer.

"Answer me, _whore_, that is what you are isn't it? A whore?"

I didn't answer.

"Oh well," he sat down on my desk, "I guess we have some time to kill." He chuckled. "Hey, you want to play a game?"

I shuddered. The Shadow's games were always foul. "N-no."

"Let's play anyway, how about…" I could hear his lips spreading wide and evil across his face. "Walk down memory lane? Let's start with that time you kissed our best friend!"

I sobbed.

-/TeaShop/-

"_Henry." He looked up. We were eating at the dinner one night, alone, just hanging out and I realized how much I never wanted this to change. Henry, me, and a few hot chocolates? Best evening ever._

"_Yeah?" His eyes narrowed and his brow raised, "What's wrong? You look sad."_

"_I…I need to tell you something and I don't think you're going to like it and I'm definitely not going to like it."_

"_What? What is it?" It took me a moment to breathe. "You're scaring me."_

"_The…the reason why things never really work out for me…well, before I was a Phoenix, there was this beautiful boy I grew up with…" And I told him the story of the Peach Tree Lovers, a story that was intertwined with my tale for centuries until forgotten one spring. Only the Phoenixes, the Lost Boys who were told, and I knew it. And now Henry. "The old woman, never approved of our love and blamed me for her son's death. __**I**__ blame myself for his death. And so, she cursed me, turned me into a Phoenix so that I could only die by love's hands and suffer for eternity. She wanted my pain so much that she cursed me to ruin any relationship I ever had."_

"_What do you mean?"_

"_I…I'm responsible for my family's deaths and for my separation with…with…" I couldn't say his name but Henry took my hand anyway._

"_It's okay, Kendra, I understand…why, why are you telling me this?"_

"_Because I don't want this to end," I wiped my hands across my eyes. "I feel comfortable and at home here and I don't want it to end, so, so," a hiccup bubbled from my lips, "if, if anything were to happen…"_

_Henry hummed, nodding. "I understand."_

-/TeaShop/-

I wished he did; he understood.

-/TeaShop/-

"_You know what I love about you?" I looked up at Peter as he took a bite from a pastry I figured out how to make._

"_What?" I drawled, lounging back on the log. We were on the beach and all the boys were taking a dip. Felix was dozing in one of the trees. _

"_You always come up with the best ideas." I laughed. He took another bite and pointed a finger at me. "I'm serious and I'm only going to say this once, this is delicious, the day is beautiful, and I don't feel any stress."_

"_I'm glad to hear it." I stretched my wings out, closing my eyes. I took a peek at Peter. He was watching the boys, a little grin on his face. I hummed and let the sun bathe me._

_Then a shadow loomed over me._

_I groaned, peeking. "What?" I growled._

"_Come swim with us." _

"_Two things. One: I'm a bird. Two: I'm made of fire. This is not a good idea." Peter pouted, sticking out his bottom lip._

"_Kkkkkeeeeennnnnndddddrrrrrrraaaaaaaaa."_

"_No."_

"_But-"_

"_No."_

"_But-"_

"_Go bother Felix." _

"_No! Don't bother Felix," Felix called out from his tree. _

"_Guuuuuuyyyyyyzzzzzz."_

"_Go play with one of the boys."_

"_Buuuuttttt-"_

"_Go."_

"_Bu-"_

"_Go."_

_Peter huffed. "Fine." I grinned when I heard him stomping away._

_Unfortunately, when he came back fifteen minutes later, he thought it would be a __**great**__ idea to hug me with his sopping wet body. That asshole._

-/TeaShop/-

I was hiding in one of the secret-secret hiding places down in the tea shop because I couldn't deal with talking with other people but I didn't want to be alone and Evil Shadow was _not_ an option. Today was actually one of the busier days at the shop. The door tinkled open, soft feet pattering over to the cashier.

"Hey!" Sebastian's smile was clear in his voice, but so was the wariness and sadness.

"Do you know where Kendra is? Could I speak to her?" My heart clenched painfully.

"Listen, Henry, I don't think that's such a good idea. Kendra has been very unbalanced lately and I don't want you to get hurt-"

"I know what was really happening."

"What?"

"The Curse, Kendra's Curse. It-she explained it to me a long time ago and I just wanted to talk to her. I-I understand what happened."

"Henry…" Tears welled up in my eyes, black ash dripping down into the little box I was in. I surprisingly felt a lot better stuck inside a little box where no one could see me and I was forced to control my breathing.

"_Please_." Seb sighed.

"She's hiding in one of the boxes, I don't know which one, she does that sometimes."

"Hides in boxes?"

"She likes to think no one will find her there," and then Seb said louder, "but _I know you're in there_!"

I bit my lip and held my breath. Maybe Henry wouldn't find me. Maybe he'd decide to come back. Or maybe he'd never come back and let me wilt alone in this box, forced to die a lonely and enclosed in a box death. What if he decided to-

The box lid lifted up a bit. Hazel eyes peered down at me. "Kendra?" he whispered and was about to move the lid aside but I curled away from him. He left the box just a little open. "Hi."

I couldn't answer, my tongue felt heavy in my mouth.

"I know you're probably feeling awful about what happened, Mary Margaret feels that way too." I whined. "But, I'm not mad at you, okay? And, and I made sure everyone knew what really happened." I looked up, tears in my eyes. "They know, Kendra, it's okay."

"B…ut…"

"It's okay, and I forgive you, for yelling."

I sat up, head lifting the lid away. "I didn't mean to-I swear, that was, that was, I didn't want to, I didn't know, I just-I just thought everything was okay and that everyone was fine and it was a beautiful day at the tea shop and-"  
"Kendra, Kendra, I understand." Henry pulled the lid off my head before dragging me up into a hug. "I'm sorry I didn't realize."

"It wasn't your fault, I-" my voice cracked. "I should've known." We held onto each other for a while before Henry helped me out of the box. Seb smiled at me from behind the counter and more inky tears leaked from my eyes.

"It's okay, it's okay…"

I nodded.

"How about we hang out today."

I hiccupped again. "A-are you sure?"

"Of course," he grinned. "But, I'm meeting with my dad right now, but you should come."

"Should I?"

"Definitely."

He went to go get hot chocolates and I pulled my green jacket tighter against me, feeling slivers of warmth creep back into my body.

-/TeaShop/-

Neal and Emma both smiled at me when I came by. Surprisingly they weren't mad and they didn't feel the need to pull Henry away from me. I almost broke down at that.

And Neal's fiancé (I didn't even want to get into that drama), Tamara, did infact bring bagels like Neal promised. But something was off about the brunette. Probably had to do with her only bringing _plain_ bagels. Had she ever heard of everything? Or cinnamon? Or egg? Or blueberry? Or poppy? Or-I should see if we can put bagels into the shop. Wonder if Seb would go for that…

"So how'd you guys meet?"

"Um…well, I was super late to work," Tamara started after Neal didn't. _Teeeennnssssion_. "Rushing like crazy, guzzling my giant coffee, when this guy _crashed_ into me." She chuckled and I had to give her points for the humor and hand motions. "My coffee soaked my blouse. There was no time to change, so Neal gave me his scarf to hide the stains. And he said I could keep it or call him if I wanted to return it." _Smmmooootttthhh Neal._ "I decided to call, and, well, we've been together ever since."

Henry had this cute little smile on his face.  
"Sounds like fate." Did I detect _bitter_ in Emma's voice?! "I've gotta drop Henry off with his grandpa. Thanks for the bagel."

"It was nice meeting you, Tamara," Henry, the ever pleasant gentlemen said. I smiled at the woman.

"Same," I added.

"You, too."

"Here you go, man." Neal presented the book.

"Why don't you hold on to that? You'll probably want to take a look at it and besides, Kendra knows the book like the back of her talo-"

"Hand." I corrected, shooting him a look.

"Okay. See you."

"See you later."

"Baaaaiii!" I called, waving at him.

-/TeaShop/-

My phone rang. Henry was playing with Charming. "Yellow," I greeted.

"_August is alive._"

"_What_?" I almost dropped the phone.

"_Mary Margaret found him in the woods, he's still wood._"

"Where is he?"

"_We don't know, he disappeared._"

"I, uh, thanks, I'll start looking for him." I hung up, said goodbye to Henry, and flew out the door.

-/TeaShop/-

I was checking all the buildings up and down the main street. I entered the police station and smelt burnt wood. I froze and then sprinted. Stumbling into the room, I gasped when I found a figure sprawled on the ground. I gasped. "Gust!"

I raced down to him, turning his body closer to me. "August, August, _AUGUST_!" His eyes flickered.

"…Dra?" Inky black tears dripped down my face.

"August, my boy, _August_."

"…Mom…my?"

"Sweetie, sweetie," I cooed. My fingers smoothed across the lines of wood. His large blue eyes were wide and teary.

"It-it hurts, Dra."

"I know, I know," tears welled up in my eyes and I urged for them to heal August, heal someone I loved so much. But all that came out was black. "No, no, no!" I clawed at my eyes with my growing talons.

"Dra, Dra, what are you doing?"

"I-I need to save," I choked, "Save you."

"It's-it's okay, Dra, it's, it's…" I whined, sobbing. I buried him in my arms, lifting him up in my hug.

"No, no, no, who did this? Who hurt my baby?"

"It was-Emma, we need to tell Emma."

"No-no, sweetie, tell me now-"

"No! Emma!" He cried and I nodded, pushing aside his own angry tears. I hurled him up from the ground and dragged us outside.

"AUGUST! KENDRA!" the others shouted when we bursted into the street. Gust slipped out from my arms and fell to the ground. I fell with him, pulling his head into my lap.

"My child, my boy," Marco looked up at me, but I couldn't look at him. I could've told him…I could've told him about August… "What happened to you?"

"I'm so sorry, Papa."

"No," he cried, "There is nothing to apologize for. Everything is gonna be alright." August turned to Emma, his blue eyes turning grey.

"Emma," he cooed.

"August."

He lunged up and Kendra supported him. "Emma…she's…she's…" he struggled for words and breath and I rubbed his back, soothing him as much as possible.

"Oh, no. Not again."

"August!"

Marco and I sobbed for the boy. And for a moment, I could tell that Marco knew, just by the strokes of August's hair and the fidgeting of his jacket, how I kissed his head and cried; I could tell he knew.

"August?" Neal appeared, god that weirdo was like a too late superhero, showing up at scenes of crime.

"No. It can't end this way. He was supposed to get a second chance."

I looked up, tears in my eyes. "Not…" I gasped. "Not everyone gets a second chance."

Snow shook her head. "No, no!"

"What happened?"

"Someone killed him to stop him from telling us something. He used his last dying breath to warn us." Emma looked at me. "Did he say anything?"

"No," I wallowed, "No, he wanted-he wanted to tell you, not-not me. He wanted me to make him…" I couldn't say 'forget'; I couldn't say he wanted a moment of soothing.

"I will not let that be in vain," Emma continued, adamant in her vow.

Henry mumbled under his breath and I rubbed August's beard. God, I hated that beard, it hurt my cheeks and everything, but, but… "Brave, truthful, and unselfish. Don't you see what this means? That's what Pinocchio was supposed to be. There's still hope. We need the blue fairy."

"I'm here, Henry." And yet another too late superhero came, stumbling in, out of breath. I wanted to tear her eyes out.

"What does Henry mean?"

"I was able to turn Pinocchio into a real boy after he sacrificed his life for Marco's." The man trembled. "If his actions today were indeed brave, truthful, and unselfish, then you're right. There's a chance I can do it again."

"Please, I beg of you. Try." I looked up at the fairy and gave her the only hopeful look I've _ever_ given her. She knew what that meant. She knew what that meant and so she nodded, raising her blue wand, a blue light casting over August.

When the light faded, a little boy with auburn hair and innocent eyes looked up at Marco. "Father?" He looked at me but his eyes couldn't make a connection.

"Pinocchio." He raised the boy's hand. "Look. Look."

"I'm a real boy. I'm a real boy!" I let out a sob. He didn't…he didn't remember me. Geppetto was too caught up in his son to notice, bringing him up for a hug. I stumbled to my feet, looking away from the boy I used to know.

"Do better this time, Pinocchio," the blue fairy warned. He nodded. When she backed away from him, I lunged for the woman, wrapping my arms around her, and letting out quiet sobs. She rubbed my back and I felt little tears touch my head. I stood there for another moment before yanking myself out of her arms and leaping into the air, never looking back.

-/TeaShop/-

"August is a little boy." Seb looked up from the counter.

"What?"

"And he doesn't remember anything."

"So," he fumbled for words, "Gust, doesn't remember us anymore?"

"Yeah," I nodded. "He doesn't remember me taking care of him or growing up with you or taking care of you or-"

Seb pulled me into his arms and I felt the sadness of every Phoenix incarnated cry with us, the ache in our bodies seeping into the floor. A shadow of a hand touched my head. "I'm sorry," the nicest shadow mumbled and I cried harder, begging for any shadow to go away and let me be.

To let me be smoothed by the warmth of my kind.


	21. WE'RE ALMOST THEEEEERRRRRRRREEEEEEEE Pt1

**Chapter Twenty One: A Glass of Wine Is Best With...**

The shop was closed the next day, black curtains falling down the windows, as Sebastian and I stayed inside, curled up in each other's arms, sharing stories, watching classic movies, crying over the loss of our other third gone missing.

-/TeaShop/-

Red brought us some food-food from Granny's. "Dankyou," we cooed in synch. Red laughed.

"If I didn't know any better…" she mumbled. I raised my eyebrow.

"What? If I didn't know any better then what?"

"I'd think you we're a couple."

Seb was startled.

Red laughed before growing silent when we didn't laugh with her. "What? Seriously?"

"Wwweeeiiillll," I mumbled. I sat up and Sebastian's head was repositioned on my lap. "There was this one time-"

"It didn't mean anything!" Seb cried.

"There was this one time," I continued; Red sat forward in her seat, eager, "sometime early in our relationship, where anything could happen. We both knew that I was to be mated with Peter, but Sebastian and I were _extremely_ close."

"Who made the first move?" Red's lips were wide, "Was it you?"

"Surprisingly," I laughed, "it was Sebastian." Red guffawed.

"What? How!"

"He got me a present, a pastry, one day and then he lunged for my lips."

Red erupted into giggles. "Oh my god…"

"But I moved before he could kiss me." If anything, Red laughed harder. Seb's face was turning a deep red. "And that was that. Sebastian avoided me for weeks in embarrassment before he could look me in the eye."

Sebastian hid his face in my lap and I felt just a little bit better.

-/TeaShop/-

The next day I hung out with Henry. But he wanted to help Emma trail Tamara and I couldn't handle any thought of August-I just didn't operate that way-so I snuck out of that activity. Henry pouted but I kissed his forehead and went on my way.

-/TeaShop/-

"Do you often wander around alone?" a familiar voice asked.

I looked up. "I, uh, yeah. What are you doing here? I didn't…I didn't summon you."

The shadow's brows quirked. "So I just can't come of my own free will?"

"You're a curse, meant to destroy everything I love, but you're a Shadow that only comes when I summon it, so…yeah, why are you here?"

"Just wanted to haaaannnggg," his face cleared of shadow, body becoming more solid.

"Which Shadow are _you_?" I asked.

"Definitely not the evil one."

"Or the sweet one."

"Or angsty, conceited, or suave one."

"Oh god, if the _suave_ one appeared-"

"You called?" Something nipped at my ear. I gasped, startled. I turned around to look at the other Shadow who was fingering a lock of my ear. "You look so…" He leered. "Delicious."

The other shadow laughed and pushed Suave Shadow away, making it disappear. "Now that he's went," he grinned, "You should call me Cool Shadow. Or Awesome Shadow. Or-"

"Or I should call you Pan Shadow, you're the only one that acts like him the most."

"Oh," Pan Shadow frowned, "I guess you're right."

We kept walking, his arm looped in mine.

"Why are you here?"

"You wanted your friend. You wanted someone to hug you." My eyes teared up and I nodded.

"Of course, of course." My voice trembled. "Of course I did."

-/TeaShop/-

The next day I found out that secretly everyone was growing magic beans AKA everyone was planning to go back to the EF (without telling me, I might add) but that also all of the beans were missing (everyone was an idiot) and that so was Regina, probably.

And as we stormed into the Mayor's office, guns and fireballs drawn, we found out that she really _wasn't_ there. "Huh."

"It's okay! She's not here." Henry and Snow came inside.

"When you find her," Henry began warily, "you're not gonna hurt her, are you?"

"Course not."

"No, we just want the beans she stole from us." I went over to Henry, taking his hand.

"I don't get it. Why would Regina leave her office unlocked?" We trailed over to the case with the beans in it.

"Especially when she's keeping the beans here."

"_Was_ keeping them here. They're gone."

I sighed. "Pretty plant," I cooed.

"Something's not right," we looked over at Emma, "Regina would never leave evidence like this behind."

"Maybe she already used them to portal out of StoryBrooke."

"Without Henry? I don't think so."

Henry turned to his mother. "What if something bad happened to her?"

"Security system says the last time someone was in the office was around six this morning." She pressed a button. "They used an override code to get in."

"Why would Regina need an override code on her own alarm?"

"Good question Sherlock!" Henry elbowed me.

"She wouldn't."

"You think someone else broke in and took the beans?"

"Well, we haven't found Regina anywhere and haven't heard from her."

"So something bad _did_ happen to her."

"We're gonna find her, Henry. I promise."

"There's only one person who could overpower Regina," Snow spoke, slightly ominous.

I said, "Sebastian." Just as Charming said,

"Gold."

They looked at me and I shrugged. "It's not Seb, I swear, he's too busy with Red to be evil."

"Yeah, and Gold's too busy with his new slash old girlfriend. No, this wasn't Gold." I nodded.

"True dat."

"This was Tamara."

I made a noise of protest, "I knew I shouldn't have trusted her. Her taste in bagels? Awful, she didn't even bring _cinnamon_ ones." Everyone gave me a look.

Emma's parents got uncomfortable, shifting slightly where they stood. "Haven't you already went down that road?"

"Like yesterday?"

"Maybe not far enough."

"_Or_ maybe it's time for you to let it go?"

"August," Emma paused when I made a noise, "was attacked the day Tamara came to town. I don't think that was a coincidence."

"What if you're wrong? If Regina's in trouble we can't just drop everything else because of a hunch," Charming reasoned.

"Which is why we're not gonna drop everything else. Go to Gold. I'm sure he has some kind of magic that can help locate Regina."

"Where are you going?"

"Back to Tamara's room."

-/TeaShop/-

I got back to the shop, deciding to go get some drinks for our fun little search party. I walked through the doors and…found…everything…utterly destroyed. Tables were on their sides, chairs were broken, books spilling out of their shelves, tea cups broken, tea spilled across the tiles, glass everywhere-everything was just a mess. I looked around and found some of the wall destroyed.

"Oh my…"

There, in thick black letters, graffitied across the walls was written: **HE WILL DESTROY EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE YOU LOVE AND HE WILL NOT FAIL SO STOP, BACK OFF**. And down below was: **HE DOESN'T LOVE YOU**. I sank to my knees, glass shards digging into my flesh. "My…my shop."

I looked around at the mess, anger swelling up in me. My eyes blazed red. Some _idiot_ destroyed my shop. _My_ shop. I loved this shop-fudging _love _it. "I'm." I stood up, fists clenching. "Going. To. _Kill_. Whoever did this."

-/TeaShop/-

When I told Sebastian he was as furious and outraged as I was. We planned on destroying (read: obliterating) whoever did this. They were going to _pay_.

My precious baby: destroyed.

Henry and I hung out for the rest of the day, scheming on how to catch/find/obliterate whoever did this.

-/TeaShop/-

"_I'm going to open a up a tea shop, you hear?" I announced one day. Pan's eyebrows quirked._

"_Why a tea shop?"_

"_Tea," I announced, "is the most amazing thing in the universe. When I open this, and believe me, I __**will**__, it will be the most beautiful thing in the universe!"_

"_Like tea?"_

"_Like tea, it will be __**better**__ than tea-it'll be that amazing. And destroying it would be destroying __**me**__!" I gasped, floundering, sprawling across the ground. Pan chuckled and Felix snickered._

"_Okay, Kendra."_

"_Believvvvvvvveeee Pan, it will be aaaaammmmmaazzziing! Better than tea!"_

"_Now you're repeating yourself."_

_I sat up, "This idea is worthy of loops and repeating ideas."_

"_Okay, Kendra," their voices were disbelieving. I flipped them off._

-/TeaShop/-

I was messing in the Charmings kitchen with Henry when I felt the shadow appear. "I-I just wanted to let-let you know that-that others are cah-coming." Sweet Shadow stuttered.

I looked up. "What?"

"Kendra?"

"Hello, bitch." My eyes snapped over to the sink.

"Kendra!" Henry kept calling when I didn't reply.

"My love," Suave Shadowed cooed, leaning up against me.

"Kendra, what's that?" My eyes shot over to Henry.

"What?"

"Why-why are there shadows everywhere?"

"Y-you can _see_ them?"

"Yeah! Wait, wait, what are they?" The room began to fill with the many versions of Pan and Henry lunged for me, searching for protection. "W-what's going on?"

"They're Shadows-a piece of my Curse that plagues me with hallucinations. They're-they're not real, how-how can you see them?"

"I-I don't know."

"We've come for her," one of the Shadows spoke up. I decided to call him Leader Pan.

"What? Why?"

"It's time."

Henry looked over at them. "Time? Time for what?"

"It's time."

"For?"

"It's time."

"FOR WHAT?"

"It's time."

Realization dawned on my face. "It's time?"

"It's time," he nodded and then they disappeared. I looked at Henry and grinned sadly.

"Let's go to the park, yeah? With Granny? We'll get hot chocolate."

"What's it time for?" Henry asked, pulling on his jacket.

"It's time for something I've been waiting centuries for to have happen."

"Which is?"

"I…" I swallowed, "I'll tell you when it's time."


	22. SSSEAAAASSSOOONNN FINALE Pt2

**Chapter Twenty Two: ...A Piece of Chocolate Cake**

"_What's that?" I peered down from Peter's shoulder. A picture of young boy with a goofy grin was etched across the parchment. He looked up, rolling up the scroll, and stashing it away._

"_It's nothing."_

_I frowned, "Oh come on, what is it Peter?"_

"_It's…" He trailed off. My eyebrow raised and so did his. _

"_What's wrong?"_

"_This boy, The Truest Believer, is going to save Neverland."_

_My frown deepened. "Is Neverland in need of saving."_

"_No," Peter shook his head and a look that made me uneasy flickered on his face, "but it will be."_

-/TeaShop/-

Henry was swinging on his swing and I sat on one of the sharp rocks. Who even _designed_ this playground? There were sharp rocks _everywhere_. If one kid was stupid or clumsy enough to just up and jump-SPLAT! And that wasn't such a happy idea. Also, "Granny, why do you have a crossbow?"

"For protection," the gruff woman replied. I shrugged, made sense, I'll let her be.

"Emma," Henry greeted. I turned to the blonde and waved.

"Hey, why don't we sit down?"

Henry stopped swinging and I perked up. "Wh-what is it?"

They sat down on the bench and I snuggled up to the boy, spreading as much warmth as I could into his little body. "I…have something really…to tell you."

"What's wrong? What happened?"

"Neal, your father," Emma almost let out a cry, "fell through a portal."

"Is he going to be okay?" I asked.

"He was…shot." Henry reached for his mother and we hugged him. I wrapped my wings around the both of them, cocooning them with feathers. "There was nothing…"

"Shh," I soothed, "It's going to be okay, shh…"

-/TeaShop/-

We stumbled back into the apartment and Henry reunited with his mother. And then there was a tremble quaking across Storybrooke and I let out a cry when I saw some precious slice of cantaloupe fall to the floor. "CANTALOUUPPPEEE!"

"Kendra!" Snow exclaimed, "No need to _yell_."

"But, the cantaloupe," I whispered.

"I have more."

"Oooohhh, gimme!" I made grabby hands and Snow directed me to the fridge.

"Regina was that…?"

"Yes. The diamond was activated."

"So we're all gonna die."

I turned back to the crowd. What? "What?" They looked at me. "What do you mean we're gonna die? I heard no plans of death!"

"The failsafe of the curse has been activated."

"Nnnnnooooooo," I whined, pouting. "I _detest_ this entire ordeal." And then I turned back to rifling through the fridge.

Regina turned back to Henry. "You were born here, so you'll live."

"What about Kendra? And Sebastian? Phoenixes don't…magic doesn't…"

"We'll be forced to be reincarnated," I told him, looking back, I held the melon in my hand, "Magic can't necessarily kill or harm us but very strong magic can make us age or deage into a new incarnation."

"But…" I placed the melon on a cutting board and hauled out a huge knife. "I'll be alone."

"I'm so sorry, Henry."

"I'm not gonna let this happen. You did this. Now make it stop," Emma's words were like a blade, swift but hacked annoyingly along your body.

"I can't. There's no way."

I cut myself a slice of delicious orange cantaloupe and brought it to my lips. Sweet juices…I felt a wisp of a breath ghost my ear. "My, my, doesn't that look _delicious_." I hummed and glanced at the Shadow. He seemed alright.

"Well, figure it out. It's your fault."

"Stop! I already lost my dad. I don't wanna lose anyone else. We have to work together."

"From the mouths of babes. I'd say the lad has a point," Killian sauntered in. Charming punched him in the nose.

"Killian!" I exclaimed, happy to see him alive. God, where _has_ he been the past week or so?

"That's for the last time we met."

"Bloody hell." The pirate looked over at me and his mouth dropped. "My god, woman, what the hell is that?" Everyone else looked over.

"What?" I asked with the orangey yum in my mouth.

"Kendra," Snow began slowly, as if I was a skittish animal (pah-leazzz), "Don't freak out-"

"-Because _that_ always calms people down-"

"-but there is a almost human shadow standing next to you."

"Huh," I looked over at Shadow, "I didn't think you could see him."

"Please tell me that's not," Killian started, but I shot him a look.

"Nah, just a hallucination-wow, this has only ever happened like once or twice before," Shadow nodded at me, "Cool. Don't worry about him, he's one of the nicer hallucinations, go back to your conversation." They seemed reluctant to look away but Charming eagerly pulled out his gun.

"Now, tell us why you're here before I use something else _other_ than my first."

"Is this a penis metaphor? Kinky, Charming," I whispered so quietly that only Shadow could chuckle.

"I think threatening to kill me is a bit redundant when we're all about to die anyway."

"No thanks to you," Emma the Sass Princess (Because Felix was obviously the king and Peter obviously the Queen) sassed, "Regina just told us you were working with Tamara and Greg to get your revenge."

"_Hook_," I chastised, tsking at him.

"Well, that was before they told me I had to die to get it." I looked down at his appearance. Had he always worn his clothes with his chest showing? Answer: Pretty much, yes.

"We don't have time for this. We have a real problem." I glanced at the Shadow.

"Yoooouuuuu…" It rolled its eyes at me and blew me a kiss.

"Which is why I'm here, 'cause staring death in the face has made me realize if there's one thing I want more than my revenge, it's my life." And Milah. And Peter Pan's luscious eyebrows. But mostly Milah. "So should we start this thing now and _then_ resume bickering?"

"There is no stopping it. And the best thing I can do is slow it down, but that will only delay the inevitable." Cantaloupe was delicious and very messy but I continued eating the beautiful fruit anyway. _Peter_ and Felix always brought me cantaloupes because they were yummy and easy to find.

"It'll give us the time we need."

"The time for what?"

"Steal back the beans. Use them to get everyone back into the Enchanted Forest before StoryBrooke is gone."

"How? We don't even know where Greg and Tamara are."

"Well, I do. I can help," Killian volunteered.

"Help yourself. You'll take them and leave us all behind. Why should we trust you?"

"No, we won't have to," Charming decided. "I'll go with him." I raised my hand.

"I volunteer as tribute to tribute in this quest of finding those whom we seek!" I made flourish hand movements and everything.

"Okay," Charming agreed. "If he tries anything, I'll shoot him in the face."

"Quite hostile, aren't we?"

"Just being clear."

"I'll take Regina to slow down the diamond, give you guys time. Mary Margaret, take Henry. Gather everyone. Make sure they're ready to go as soon as we have those beans."

"Let's go team!" I cheered, kissing Henry on the crown of his head. The Shadow disappeared and we trotted out of the room.

-/TeaShop/-

_I stepped aboard the Jolly Roger. Captain Hook glared at me when I approached. "I come bearing gifts."_

_He raised his eyebrow. "Poison I take?"_

"_Nah," I shook my head, handing him the cupcakes. "Just came to apologize for the boy's pranks."_

"_Me crew and I were not so pleased to wake up one morning covered in __**feathers**__." _

"_Yes, well," I looked down at my body, "I felt the same."_

_He gave her a confused look._

"_Well, enjoy, I'm going to go prank the Lost Boys now," I grinned, taking flight. "Have a jolly day!"_

-/TeaShop/-

We parked just outside of the Canary and then the ground trembled. I reverted back into my human form. Hook regained his balance and announced, "Time's running out."

"Oh, is that what that means?" Charming mocked.

"Boys," I tsked as we ran.

-/TeaShop/-

"So, tell me, Hook," we trailed inside the rusty building, "all this time, it's been about revenge for you? Why is it suddenly so important to you that you survive? I know what I'm fighting for-my family." I almost announced I was doing this for Henry. _It was time_-and I could only guess what _that_ meant. "What are you fighting for?"

"Myself. That's plenty of motivation, I can assure you." We stumbled across a doorway and something clanked. "Quiet." Charming drew his gun and went in first. I summoned a ball of fire, trailing behind Killian. We hid behind barrels as someone walked in. Charming came out from his spot.

"The beans-give 'em to me." Greg, god I really wanted to punch his kicked puppy face, sat down his bags and pulled out a jar.

"You mean these?" He looked at me. "How's the shop?" Someone stepped from the other end and I twirled around, seeing Tamara pull out a gun. I lunged as a loud shot rang out. I looked down at my chest.

It didn't hit my heart per say, I thought, as I fell to the ground. Just a little to the left of it. The blood seeped out steadily, soaking my pale green tank. I didn't even notice as Charming ran off and I could only watch as Hook fought with Greg, clutching at my skin. The flesh was slowly sealing itself back up-but I needed to removed the bullet or else it would stay there, forever. My talons grew and I tore at the cloth, not caring for modesty, and gazed down at the bullet hole. It was a clean shot and I dug the talons into the flesh, grasping for the bullet, and I refused to make a sound, a high whine caught in my throat. I wiggled the damn thing out and threw it onto the ground before promptly following with it.

I was holding my chest, tapping my legs, when Killian finally was able to drag me up. "Kendra!"

"Hi…"

"You're shot!"

"I got the bullet out," I pointed at the mass on the ground. The man nodded.

"Let's get you somewhere safe." I nodded and he pulled me along, catching up with Charming.

-/TeaShop/-

"We have the beans!"

"Alright!" I stumbled over to one of the seats in Granny's Diner, holding the wound, stopping it from bleeding.

Emma came in, "You did it?"

"Yeah."

"You okay," Emma pointed out his bicep.

"Oh, it's…grazed. It's fine."

"I was shot," I told Emma but the woman only gave me a look of sympathy before turning back to the people. Well then. I didn't really participate in the huge conversation about Regina's imminent death, the new idea of saving everyone, and some other jazz that I didn't really care all too much. I was more focused on the wound in my chest and the realization of the fate of my beautiful shop.

That asshole Greg _Mendell_ and fudging Tamara_ I Don't Give A Sass What Her Last Name Is_ destroyed my tea shop. I pouted and then frowned and then seethed. "'m gonna kill that son of a bi-" I looked up at the group, "I'm going to go…" They were already _gone_. I growled; they _left_ me. "Well then." I got up. "I'm going to go see Seb and then I'm going to go kill some whack jobs."

-/TeaShop/-

"I know who did it!" Seb looked up from his place on the couch. I went into my room.

"Did what?"

"Destroyed our shop."

"Who was it?" I tore off my shirt and pulled on a turquoise tank, some shorts, and my converse. I grabbed a jacket just in case.

"Greg and Tamara-they also made Pinocchio revert to a memory-less boy." I heard a crash.

"_WHAT?_"

"Yeah, and they're being directed by Peter." This time a glass dropped on the ground and Seb cursed.

"Dammit, Kendra," he ran to my room, "What the hell?"

"I got shot."

"What is happening!"

"I'm better now, but I found out before that that they destroyed our shop. I also overheard Hook talking about how they take orders from someone. And only Pan knows how much I care about this shop and would want something like that written."

"Oh my god, please don't," Seb cried when he realized what was happening.

"It's time."

"Kendra…"

"Time for me to save the Truest Believer and return to Neverland."

"You're going to die," he whispered, reaching up for my face.

"Nah," I shrugged. "I've got this."

"This is _such_ a bad idea."

"I know."

"Then why are you going?"

"Because."

"That's not an answer and you know it." I smiled, kissed his cheek, and walked past him.

"Bye, Seb-oof!" Sebastian dragged me into his arms for a really, really, _really_ tight hug.

"Come back safe."

"I'll try."

"Try harder."

"I will."

"Don't fall to your Curse also."

"Mkay," I nodded. But we both knew that if I ever fell prey to it, I would've never been able to break out of it on my own.

-/TeaShop/-

I found them at the docks. "GREG! TAMARA!" I roared. They looked back at me and kept scurrying along. I growled and stomped my way over. "LET GO OF HIM YOU ASSHATS!"

Henry looked back at me. "Kendra!" Tamara broke away from the two and drew her gun again.

"You're supposed to be dead," she said. I rolled my eyes. Greg inched Henry closer to the edge.

I laughed. "Did you really think a bullet would kill me?" I glared down at her. "Give me back Henry."

"No, we have a job to do, and we're gonna do it."

I looked at her and started to lunge, content with the idea of strangling her. But Tamara, that stupid butt face, lowered the gun and pulled the trigger, again. Pain erupted in my knee cap and I howled, stumbling to the ground.

"KENDRA!" Henry cried, struggling against Greg. Tamara sadly smirked and leaned down.

"You should've listened to our warning." I scowled and dragged my talons across her face, digging the sharp blades as deeply as I could into the flesh. I wanted her to _hurt_. Tamara shot me in the other knee. I cried out. Greg threw the last bean.

"HENRY!" The combined screams of the power team and I yelled as the trio jumped into the water. I couldn't get to my feet. Regina and Emma lunged for them but were pulled back and Snow fell to her knees by my side.

"Kendra!"

"No, no, no, no! We have to follow them, there has to be another way!"

"Not only do we not know where they went, but Hook stole the last bean."

I was distracted by Snow's fussing to even begin to explain how much I knew where the boy was. "Kendra, what the hell happened?"

"Tamara shot me because she didn't like that I won the beauty pageant." Snow snorted and I helped fish out the two bullets in my legs. Attempting to walk was going to be a _bitch_. I zoned back in when Emma yelled,

"I can't just let them take Henry!"

"They've taken Henry?" And POOF Magical Rumple here to the rescue.

"Rumple!" I cooed and I looked at Belle. "Beeeellllee! Nice to see you burger and iced tea girl-how ya doing?" The girl stuttered and Rumple ignored me.

"Yeah. You're the Dark One. Do something."

"Gold, help us."

"There's no way. I spent a lifetime trying to cross worlds to find my son, there's no way in this world without a portal." Emma looked at me.

"Kendra…"

"I already told you, Phoenixes and their Mates, the only thing we can travel with."

Emma turned back to Gold. Regina scowled. "So that's it? He's gone forever? I refuse to believe that." Belle moved through the crowd.

"What is that?"

I looked over from where I still sitting from the ground. I saw the Jolly Roger. "KILLIAN!" The sight of the ship was the only good thing that had happened today.

-/TeaShop/-

I was happily riding on Charming's back. "What the hell are you doing here?" Emma asked as the most beautiful leather-clad man ('cept maybe Jefferson) descended from his ship.

"Helping."

"Well, you're too late."

"Am I?" He looked over at me. "What the bloody hell happened to you?" He extracted me from Charming's back.

"I got shot in the knees!" The man shot me a concerned look but also rolled his eyes.

"Of course you did."

"Don't worry," I mumbled, "It'll heal in a few moments. Besides, we have more pressing matters."

He nodded and handed over the pouch to Miss Swan. "I thought you didn't care about anyone but yourself."

"Sometimes I care for Kendra," I grinned, "Maybe I just needed reminding that I could." Emma emptied the pouch and a clear magical bean laid in her palm.

"Enough waiting around. Let's go." My one knee felt completely better. I sighed in content.

"Go? Where? I thought we were saving the town."

"We already did."

"We need to get Henry. Greg and Tamara took him through a portal."

"Well, I offer my ship and my services to help follow them."

"Well, that's great, Hook," regina sneered, "but how will we track them?"

"Leave that to me," Rumple announced, "I can get us where we need to go."

"I, uh, know where they are…" No one looked at me.

Snow exhaled, "Then let's do it." Seriously? Seriously! They literally just continued their conversation. They made their way to the ship. I hobbled after them anyway, frowning at them.

-/TeaShop/-

"Hook," I started after Rumple and Killi had their pact talk. He looked at me. "Hook I know where-"

Rumple made a world globe appear. I _groaned_ at the sight of it. "Now then." Rumple placed his finger on the point of the instrument and I face palmed myself.

"I know where…" Snow shushed me. Oh my god. I looked up and watched as the red blood swirled across the globe, creating the map I know by heart.

"Where is that? Where did they take Henry?" I tensed.

Hook looked at me, "Neverland." Before looking away. Rumplestiltskin's eyes bore at me, trying to understand what was happening.

"I'll see you there." Everyone looked at me in shock as I leaped up into the air, whisking away, and off to the land I once called home.

-/TeaShop/-

_My skin was crawling, itching and burning all at once. The boys were out playing and I was left to dwindle alone in the forest. Peter didn't look like he wanted to leave me though. I almost beamed in front of him, but that would've been bad, he would've realized how much…how much I cared._

_A sharp pain splintered up my side and I slid to the ground, curling up in a ball. My talons clutched at my skull and I felt feathers begin to fall out. I gasped, grasping onto the feathers, but they kept falling and my feathers began to burn. My talons began to chip and crack and festering wounds spreaded across my form. When the talons fell away, fingernails were left to touch the skin that began to appear. My bones felt like they were stretching, that my skin was being grafted back onto my frame and my beak fell. _

_I gazed down at my body when everything disappeared. Red locks with orange tips covered my breasts and my skin felt cooler than when I had feathers. I gasped. I didn't have feathers. I was…I was __**human**__! I stood up and summoned a dress to cover me. I slipped the loose clothing on and smiled. I was human, I was human, I was human, and I could breathe and move and-_

_A sharp snap sounded from across the clearing. I looked over and gasped, "Peter?"_


	23. How to React to Seeing Your Ex

**Chapter Twenty Three: Passionfruit Tea**

_He came closer, slowly, as if not trusting the image he saw, his eyes holding wonder as he touched my pale flesh, warmth radiating and his calloused hands reaching up to cup my chin. "Kendra?" He asked, not sure if he believed it or not._

_"It's me, it's me," I whispered, tears falling down my face._

_"Shh, don't cry, why are you crying?" His eyes were tender and I heard a twig snap in the distance We both looked up startled at the sound, his eyes hardening for a moment before softening at our best friend. _

_"Kendra?" The boy with no scars on his face, which was a surprise after living on this island for so long, looked back at us with wonder and amazement. I nodded and he ran to me, pulling me into his arms and laughing. I grabbed Peter and pulled him in as well and we laughed joyously._

"_I'm human, I'm human," I cried. Peter brushed aside my tears and Felix tucked a lock of hair behind my ear. _

"_You're human," the echoed. I kissed Felix's nose and then turned to Peter. They took a step back, giving me air. I stared at Peter; he nodded._

"_I…" I took a breath, tears spilling out, smiling, "I love you." He grinned and I lunged for another kiss, wrapping my arms around his neck, and smashing my lips onto his. It was amazing and so-_

_He pushed me away and I fell to the ground. When I blinked up at him…it wasn't Peter standing there. "Felix?"_

"_Kendra, what just-"_

"_FELIX!" Peter's roar echoed through the woods and I saw a flash of green and brown before Felix was pushed to the ground and a fight broke out. Pan threw punches, but, Felix did not._

"_Peter!" I cried, scrambling to my feet. I tried to pull him off of Felix. Peter Pan glared, threw one last punch, and twisted in his spot, pushing my body to the ground. He crawled on top of me and punched my shoulder._

"_WHY! WHY?"_

"_Peter! PETER! Let me explain!" But he wouldn't, he wouldn't let me speak, punching and clawing at my skin, our eyes glowing gold. Tears welled in our eyes but he didn't stop, not until I pushed him away. "Peter, Pete-"_

"_Don't you ever call me that," he roared, "you don't deserve it you __**whore**__." I gasped and moved to slap him but he caught my wrist and twisted it painfully._

"_Pan, let me explain-"_

"_No, I want you __**gone**__. Leave and don't __**ever come back**__." He dragged me up by my arms and flung me back into the dirt. "Now." I sobbed, face streaming with tears and I felt my heart clench like it was breaking. It hurt, it so much. "GO!"_

_I nodded, defeated and got to my feet. Felix began to stir. I took flight once more._

-/TeaShop/-

I probably should have gone with them in the portal. It would've been hellofalot faster and easier than flying for a day. It…surprisingly only took me a day. Neverland was one of the further realms and I hadn't been there in a very long time so it was odd that it only took me a day.

I landed softly. Everything was still and loud all at the same time. Dark bushes and thick thickets burrowed in the paths and it was dark, the moon barely giving light and the dream shade glistening poison. There was no boom and there was no crash as soon as I came. Nothing was different except the darkness that slithered across the forest floor and seeped into every shadow, but the faint hum of the island I once remembered still greeted me, with a soft sliver of warmth creeping into my bones. I was back home and home greeted me, even if its residents wouldn't.

"Kendra?" I jumped, startled at the voice. I swirled around and came face to face with a hooded head with a gaunt face.

I gasped. "Felix?" The teen's lips parted, nodding before he stepped closer. "I…" He pulled me into his arms. "I've missed you."

"Is it…" his voice died in his throat. I held him tighter. "Is it time?"

"Yes," I mumbled, "Yes, yes, yes, of course-yes. I'm going to…I'm going to fix everything." He pushed me at arm's length, peering into my eyes, searching for any lies. When he finally saw what he needed, he nodded. We grinned and let out a desperate noise, clinging to each other again. "Oh I've missed this, missed you."

"I know," he murmured, "I know…" We stayed like that for a few moments, letting the dull sound of the island seep back into my ears. Eventually we pulled apart and his hood slipped off. I brushed his hair behind his ears.

"You need a haircut," I giggled and his cheeks rosened. My smile fell, "You need to get back."

He nodded. "Yes…Pan will be expecting me." I agreed, kissing his cheek and waving him off. Felix slinked back into the woods.

-/TeaShop/-

I stumbled close to their little clearing. "I'm Henry's mother," Emma announced. What the hell was she going on about? I looked closer and found her looking at a blank map on a rounded stone. "I used to live in Boston, and I was a bail bondsperson. I'm now the Sheriff of StoryBrooke."

"That election was a sham," Regina snided. I edged closer. "Are we really doing this?"

"Doing what?" I approached them. Before they could tell it was me, they had their weapons. I held up my hands. "Friends! Don't kill me."

"Where the hell have you been?" Emma demanded. "Why did you just _leave_?"

I looked at Hook. "Did you _really_ keep your mouth shut on this one?"

He shrugged, "I don't like thinking about it." My eyes rolled and I sat down on one of the stones.

"So what happened," Snow asked. I sighed, rubbing my eyes.

"Peter Pan," I started.

"What about him."

"All Phoenixes have True Loves who they call Mates." I looked up at the Neverland sky. "Many lifetimes ago I realized that _my_ True Love was my bestest friend Peter."

"Oh god," Snow looked horrified, "Your Peter is…"

"Peter Pan!" Regina scowled. "Well isn't this just _peachy_."

"Yeah, well, it's not completely bad."

"How?" Hook drawled. I turned to Killian.

"If I was _actually_ mated with Pan then I'd be hellofalot more protective of him and probably feel the need to kill you."

"Well this sucks," Emma grumbled. "First bloody Pan and his maps and now this? Oh, Henry…" I perked up.

"So what's up with this map?"

"It's supposed to be a map of the island-"

"-I know Neverland like the back of my hand-"

"Yeah, but _we_ don't. And Pan said that it would reveal itself once I accepted who I was." I hummed. Good riddle, Peter, you asshole and dimwit, god I just wanted to claw your eyes out right now. "So far we've established the basics."

"But don't you think, you know, that you're leaving some things out?" Snow prompted.

Emma cleared her throat, "I'm the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, which apparently makes me the product of True Love. I was born in the Enchanted Forest and I was sent through a portal in a tree so that I could break a Curse."

Charming stood up, "And you were able to break the curse because you're the…"

Emma gave him a look.

"Come on. You don't need to be embarrassed to say it."

"Say what?"

"The 'S' word." Emma sat up straight.

"I'm the Saviour." We all looked down at the parchment and it was…still blank. I sighed. "I don't get it. I said I'm the Saviour. There's nothing I've denied more than that."

"No, it's okay we'll figure it out."

"No," Regina walked over and pulled the map out of Emma's hands, "You won't."

"Regina!"

"But I can." The Evil Queen examined the parchment. "I'm beginning to think there isn't a map on here. That doesn't mean it can't lead us to Henry."

"I thought we decided that using magic was a bad idea."

"For once, I agree with the Prince." I looked over at Killian who grinned. "Well, I told you we're getting along."

"What the hell are you doing?" The blank map glowed golden.

"The locator spell. This parchment belonged to Pan. It'll lead us to him."

It floated away and ahead, venturing into the woods. "So it appears we _will_ be venturing into the Dark Jungle after all."

"You mean the place you told us never to set foot?"

"That's the one."

"I've always liked that forest." Hook looked at me as if I was crazy. Me? _Crazy?!_

Preposterous!

"Well, Emma, you said you wanted to be the leader. Lead."

She walked forward.

-/TeaShop/-

Snow walked beside me. "You know, the Peter you always described was so adorable, so sweet. The one Hook describes is a menace, a tyrant."

"He's both," I told her, pushing aside on of the leaves. "He was sweet and kind once, but the darkness was still always just a little bit there, and then I left. And it grew."

"Oh." I smiled weakly, continuing along the path.

"Ready to thank me?" Regina goaded as the spell did its work.

"Actually, yeah."

"If you'd let me do it sooner, maybe we'd have found him by now." The map slowed down and Regina held up her hand. "Wait. He's there." A felt a sick wash of feeling slide over my body. Yes, he was here alright. And foul too. "Pan. I can feel his smugness."

I turned to the woman, "Really? I'm feelin somethin' but I don't think it's smugness." Regina gave me a look and I shrugged. Charming stepped to the front and drew his sword.

"Shall we?" He spun the blade. "While we still have the element of surprise on our side?" I almost snorted. Charming led and we followed. I was going to see him.

Oh god, oh god, oh god, this was really it. I had been gone for centuries with the only image of him in my memories and hallucinations (happy thought). He probably moved on, I mean, of course he would. He was beautiful, probably found another Tavern girl (like Charlie) and whisked her away to Neverland. He probably fell in love, maybe that's why he never came to find me. Oh god, oh god, oh god, what if he really didn't love me-

No, no, of course he loves me. I'm amazing and we're True Loves and Mates and even besides that, I loved him and he loved me-at least once. We were friends, we could-we could rebuild all those burnt bridges. Yeah. Yeah. I nodded.

But how would I greet him? How would he react? Would he laugh in my face or scowl? Welcome me with open arms? Kiss me like we should've all those incarnations ago? I didn't know. I didn't know. How would _I_ greet him? Would I hug him? Swoon? Kick his shins-he _did _break my heart and destroy tea shop after all. Would I beg for mercy? Maybe I'd get Felix to help. No, no, I didn't know, I didn't know, I didn't know-

I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and kept walking. Hook patted my head as he neared.

-/TeaShop/-

No one was there. I didn't bother drawing up a weapon or a flicker of flame. Nothing could touch me. "Nothing's here," Snow called. "Maybe your spell didn't work."

"Oh, of course, blame _me_."

"Guys…hold on," I looked up and found a familiar figure standing at the top of the hill. The others followed Emma, but I made my way to a safe place behind a tree. Now would not be the best time for Pan's fury. "Is that…" No, Emma, it was not Henry, but annoyingly-sexy Peter Pan. God those jeans looked nice on him… "Henry!"

"Hi, Emma," Peter greeted, turning around. I slumped back against a tree, breathing harshly.

"Where the hell is Henry!"

"You broke the rules."

"Swan," I hissed. She broke the rules. You _never _break Peter Pan's rules. It was like signing yourself to a death contract.

"That's not fair." He continued. I sighed. His voice…still soothing for me to hear. (It was an odd accent, I'll admit, and it took me centuries for me not to be weirded out by it, but it was, in fact, quite lovely when we would have lazy days and sit by the campfire, heads resting against each other, arms wrapped around one another. It was…it was beautiful in those still moments with just his voice to dull the crackle of the fire.) "Bad form. I expected more from _you_, Captain."

"Aye, and you'll get it." Hook was looking around, trying to figure out where I'd gone.

"Give Henry to me," Emma demanded.

"Sorry. Can't. Don't you know?" Oh god, oh god, he was gonna say something about how cheaters never won. "Cheaters never win." I almost groaned, loudly, at how cheesy and annoying his lines were. I mean seriously? _Cheaters never win?_ Who the hell gave him so many bad lines? I sighed. Well I did give him this one…but I doubt he says it much anymore. And then the many Lost Boys-whew, the numbers _grew_-came circling around us with their weapons drawn, calling loud, and their fire burning. One particular teen had his bow pointed at me and had this look in his eye as if he couldn't quite place me in his memory. Huh.

And then the fight began. The one archer launched an arrow at me but it simply _turned to ash_. His eyes grew round. I grinned softly at him and then turned back to the fight. The little group of five were fighting valiantly as Pan stood from his perch at the top of the hill. That just got me…_angry_. I mean, who did he think he was? Huh? Huh? (You could definitely answer that with Peter Pan, the Dark One's father, but no one really liked to have their rhetorics answered.)

I stalked up the hill, rolling the sleeves of my jacket up. He didn't even notice me until I spoke, "Peter Pan."

His green eyes were round, lips twisted into a frown, and face shocked. I drew up real close to him, "Kendr-" and then punched him in the face. He reared back, clutching his nose. "Ow!"

"That's for breaking my heart!" And then I kicked him in the shins. "And THAT was for destroying my shop!"

He looked shocked, confused, angry, and amazed all at once. I felt little twinges of his pain filter into my mind. Guilt washed over me. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry." He looked at me, eyes wide. A completely different feeling washed over me. I looked at him and he looked back. I yanked his hands away and smashed our lips together. It was rough and it was more biting teeth and angry breath than a proper kiss but it was still good. Still good. I pushed him away. "Oh my god, I shouldn't have done that either."

He snarled, licking his lips and whistled. Felix came over, as did all the other Lost Boys, and pulled me behind Pan. Peter wiped his lips and looked back at me before looking at the others. I refused to make eye contact, too busy looking at the ground. "Remember what I told you. That map will show you where Henry is…only when you stop denying who you really are. I'll make sure to send Henry your regards."

And then we ran.

-/TeaShop/-

When we got to their base camp, Pan turned to me and pointed his finger in my face, "You're going to wait for me in my room and then we're going to _talk_."

I gulped and nodded. "Right." He walked past me and I stumbled forward.

Oh god, oh god, oh god.


End file.
